


Colors of Life and Death, Book 2: Truth in Dreams

by Wendy Winchester (Songbrd21)



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-03-12
Packaged: 2019-11-02 02:06:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 56,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17879060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Songbrd21/pseuds/Wendy%20Winchester
Summary: Naruto is back, but Jiraiya has a secret that will make his homecoming much less than happy.





	1. The News

**Author's Note:**

> Rating: 14+ for gore, language, and mild sexual references.
> 
> This story is a continuation of my "Colors of Life and Death" series. Please do not read this story first. You can find the first fic listed in my profile.
> 
> Always remember, no matter WHAT happens in this fic, that I LOVE happy endings.
> 
> Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!

 

 

 

Hinata sighed as she stared at the picture on her nightstand. It was of her and Naruto in front of his house. It had become a ritual of sorts for her to say 'good morning' and 'good night' to this picture. She missed him terribly. To have waited for him for so long and have him whisked away so soon after becoming a couple had been extremely hard on her.  _"Please come home soon,"_  she mentally begged the smiling image. She rolled over and fell into a restless sleep.

 

* * *

Hinata nearly jumped out of her skin when Sakura burst through her bedroom door at eight in the morning. She stared at the out of breath girl with wide eyes, having paused in the middle of brushing her hair for the day. "S-S-Sakura-chan! What's wrong?"

 

Sakura had a grin on her face a mile wide. "He's back!" she said happily.

Hinata instantly knew what Sakura meant and was out the door before Sakura had had time to register that the Hyuuga heiress was no longer in the room.

Sakura laughed loudly once she had gotten over the shock and followed her friend out to the gates.

 

* * *

Hinata stood on her tiptoes as she anxiously watched the horizon line. After about five minutes she spotted the fuzzy outlines of two men through the morning mist, but she frowned. Neither of them was short enough to be Naruto. She sighed. It looked like she still had some waiting to do, but then she noticed one of the 'men' had spiky, yellow hair, and her jaw dropped. As Jiraiya and Naruto came closer and emerged from the mist, she saw that the once short Naruto had grown...by a little over four inches.

As soon as Naruto walked through the gate, he noticed a slack-jawed Hinata staring at him from the front of the crowd. He laughed nervously as he stepped in front of her. "Hey, Hina-chan. I ah—I kinda grew," he said as he scratched the back of his neck.

Hinata dumbly nodded.

"Hina-chan?"

Hinata suddenly woke from her daze and threw her arms around his neck. "NARUTO-KUN!" she squealed.

Naruto let out a short breath that sounded like the start of a laugh. "Heh. Hina-chan," he said softly as he held her and closed his eyes in contentment. "I missed you," he whispered.

"I missed you too," Hinata sniffled, "so much..."

"Wooohoooo!" Kiba catcalled from the small crowd of welcomers.

Naruto's eye twitched. "Shut up, baka Inu!" he irately yelled. He turned his attention back to Hinata. Even with a group of onlookers, he couldn't resist capturing her mouth in a sweet kiss, ignoring Kiba's increased taunting.

"Eh hem," Tsunade said in an effort to get some of her son's attention.

Naruto laughed. "Sorry, Kaa-san." He gave her a quick hug and stepped back. "I missed all you guys," he said with a wide grin.

Hinata, Sakura, TenTen, and Ino couldn't stop their hearts from skipping a beat when he flashed that familiar golden smile which was now enhanced by slightly more manly facial features, not to mention the fact that his body was a lot more sculpted than it had been before he'd left. He didn't look like a bodybuilder by any means, but he was definitely no longer the scrawny boy he'd once been. Lee saw Sakura's expression and gave her a slight nudge in the ribs.

When Sakura saw the slightly hurt expression on her boyfriend's face, she smiled in apology. "No matter how good looking Naruto gets, it's  _you_  I love. You got that?"

Lee smiled and nodded, then clasped her hand.

Jiraiya put his fingers in his mouth and made a shrill whistle. "Alright, everyone!" Once he knew he had their attention, he continued. "I'm sure you all want to welcome Naruto home, but we need to speak to Tsunade for a while first."

A chorus of muttered agreements was thrown in Jiraiya's direction before the crowd dispersed. Only Hinata remained. "C...can I go?"

Jiraiya looked at her in sympathy. "I'm sorry, Hinata, but this concerns something that Tsunade should hear first."

Hinata sighed. "Alright. I'll see you later, Naruto-kun."

Naruto kissed her forehead. "You got it." After she was gone from sight, his smile fell.

When her son turned to her with such a serious face, Tsunade's chest tightened-something was very wrong. "Let's go to my office. We can talk there."

Naruto and Jiraiya nodded, and the three headed toward the Hokage tower.

 

* * *

Naruto, Jiraiya, and Tsunade sat in complete silence for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, Tsunade could take it no longer. "So...anyone going to start?"

The two weary travelers looked at each other. Jiraiya sighed. "It's the niji chakra."

Tsunade closed her eyes. "He couldn't learn to control it."

"No...it's not that. He can control it just fine, but..." Jiraiya looked at Naruto. "It's hurting him."

"What do you mean...hurting him?" Tsunade asked with a concerned glance at her son.

"He gets tired easily and his stamina is in the toilet. I think we need to find a way to remove the extra chakra colors or he'll be like this for the rest of his life."

For the first time since he had arrived home, Tsunade noticed the sallow tone of Naruto's skin and the dark rings under his eyes.  _"Jiraiya must have been disguising his condition with a genjutsu,"_  she thought. "Alright, I'll see what I can find in my books. For now, though, I'd like you to go home and rest."

Naruto smiled weakly. "You don't have to tell me twice." And with that, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Tsunade's eyebrows went up. In the entire time she'd known him, he'd never used that jutsu. She noticed a very quiet Jiraiya nervously chewing on his bottom lip. It was a very odd thing to see someone like him do. "There's something else...isn't there?" she asked with trepidation.

Jiraiya closed his eyes and nodded. "I didn't tell the whole truth about Naruto. Even he doesn't know this...I...I haven't had the heart to tell him," he said as the beginnings of tears formed in his eyes.

"Jiraiya...what is it?" Tsunade asked worriedly.

Jiraiya swallowed. "Tsu-chan..." tears made their way slowly down his face. "He's dying, Tsu-chan."

Tsunade's eyes flew open to their full capacity. "What?-!" she asked in a loud, strangled whisper.

"The only way...I can explain it," Jiraiya paused as he put his hand to his forehead to steady himself, ignoring the stunned sobs coming from Tsunade's direction. "It's the niji chakra. It's too much for his chakra circulatory system. It's slowly wearing it away. I...in about a month...I think...it'll completely collapse," he finished in a whisper.

"Liar..." came Tsunade's soft, yet defiant reply.

Jiraiya looked up at her. Her fists were balled at her sides and tears were streaming down her face. "Tsunade?"

"LIAR!" Tsunade screamed. "My son is NOT dying!"

"Tsu-chan..." Jiraiya began as he reached for her.

Tsunade punched him in the face. "GET OUT! GET OUT OF MY OFFICE!"

Jiraiya hit the wall hard, knocking the wind out of him. He lay there for a moment before sighing sadly, ignoring the pain of his quickly swelling cheek. He closed his eyes, staggered to his feet, and left the room.

Now alone, Tsunade watched the door for a moment before collapsing onto her desk in tears.

 

* * *

It had been several hours since Naruto had laid his head on his pillow and he had barely slept. His whole body ached.  _"I hate this...I hate feeling so damned weak!"_  he thought angrily. He looked at the clock. "Six-thirty. I should go see Hina-chan. I hope she doesn't mind me being so late." With that, he threw off the covers and began to get dressed.

 

* * *

"I need a favor of you, Hiashi," Tsunade stated with great difficulty. 

Hiashi cocked an eyebrow. "This from the woman who called my family traditions 'disgusting'?"

Tsunade sighed heavily. "Although you have a point, you must understand that I am protective of my son. I'm sure you would have gotten just as upset if someone had insulted Hinata."

Hiashi knew how he would have answered that question before the Chuunin exams...a resounding 'no'. However, things had changed drastically since then, so now he gave the only answer he could. "Yes." Silence. "What would you ask of me?"

"I need you to take a look at Naruto's chakra circulatory system and tell me if anything seems...unusual," Tsunade explained, trying to avoid the information of exactly 'what' she wanted him to look for.

"Unusual...in Naruto..." Hiashi cleared his throat. "Isn't that a blanket statement in his case?"

Tsunade allowed herself a small smirk. "I suppose so. I want you to look at the system itself and see if it's...degrading," she finished with a bit of shakiness entering her voice.

"Why would it be doing that?"

"The niji chakra. Jiraiya thinks...thinks that...it may be killing Naruto..." Tsunade said as she squeezed her eyes tight in an attempt to stop the tears that were threatening to fall.

Hiashi put a curled index finger to his mouth in thought. He sighed. "Alright. When do you want it done?"

Tsunade wiped her eyes. "In about ten minutes. He said he was meeting Hinata at Ichiraku for dinner."

Hiashi's eyebrow twitched, but he remained calm. "Understood." Hiashi rose from his seat. "I will be back when I have something to report," and with that, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

After he was gone Tsunade stared out the window.  _"Please let Jiraiya be wrong."_

 

* * *

The clock on the post across the street changed to seven pm and Hiashi saw Naruto walking up the road. "Byakugan!" His enhanced eyes widened at what he saw.  _"This is impossible."_  He pushed his vision further.  _"His chakra veins are twice as wide as they should be. Not only that, but they're falling apart,"_  he thought as he noted the tiny fissures in the veins. Through these fissures, chakra was leaking into places where it shouldn't have been.  _"He should be bed-ridden with this kind of damage. There must still be some weak auto healing properties from the Kyuubi's chakra that he isn't aware of."_  Deciding he'd seen enough, he stood and disappeared.

Hinata walked under the flaps at the front of Ichiraku. Naruto noticed and smiled. "Hey, Hina-chan!"

Hinata smiled and sat down. She smiled, that is, until she noticed the paleness of Naruto's complexion and the circles under his eyes. "Naruto-kun, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just haven't been getting much sleep lately," Naruto said before slurping up some more ramen.

Hinata's face wore an unsure frown. "Is...is it alright if I ask what you and Tsunade-sama talked about?"

Naruto looked down. "The niji-chakra's hurting me. Kaa-san needs to find a way to get rid of it or I'll be weak my whole life."

"Oh, Naruto-kun..." Hinata bit her lower lip. "Is...is there any way I can help?"

Naruto frowned in thought. Suddenly his face lit up with inspiration. "Can you take a look at my chakra system?"

Hinata blushed a bit. "S...sure." She looked at the ramen waiting for her on the counter. Her stomach rumbled. "But...a-after lunch?"

Naruto chuckled. "Sure."

 

* * *

"Well...?" Tsunade asked, her throat tightening so badly that she felt like she couldn't breathe.

Hiashi shook his head. "I'm sorry...Jiraiya-sama was right."

Tsunade's jaw was tightly clenched as she spoke. "I...see."

"In fact...I think the only reason he's still alive is that he has somehow awakened the auto-healing properties of the Kyuubi chakra," Hiashi stated quietly.

"Thank you...Hiashi," Tsunade said with a forced even tone to her voice.

Hiashi nodded and left the room. As soon as he shut the door he could hear screams of rage and sadness and the sounds of things being broken. He frowned, shook his head, and walked away.

 

* * *

"This looks like a good spot," Naruto announced once they had gone into the forest a bit. He spread his arms wide and smiled. "Okay, hit me."

Hinata nodded and blushed a bit. "Hai. Byakugan!" The instant Hinata saw the shape Naruto's chakra system was in she wished he hadn't asked her to look. Her eyes went back to their normal state and she stared at him—her mouth agape and her eyes filling with tears.

Naruto's heart caught in his throat at seeing his girlfriend's look of absolute horror. "H...Hina-chan?"

Hinata suddenly dropped to her knees and began crying loudly.

Naruto fell down next to her. "Hina-chan, what is it?!" he cried desperately.

Hinata could barely speak. "Y...you're...I..." She sucked in a tear-filled breath. "I...I...I...I think..." She buried her face in Naruto's chest and held onto him for dear life. "Y-y-you're dying!" she cried in despair.

Naruto's eyes went wide as dinner plates. He grabbed Hinata's arms and pushed her backward so he could look at her face. "Wh...What do you mean?!" he demanded in a shrill voice.

"Y...you're chakra s...system's d-d-deteriorating!" Hinata barely managed to squeeze out of her already heavily taxed lungs.

At this revelation, Naruto slumped forward to lean onto Hinata. As he began to cry, all of his dreams seemed to be crashing down around his ears.

 


	2. Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!

Hinata and Naruto had not moved for over fifteen minutes. After they'd had finished crying, they had remained rooted to that spot-terrified of letting go. It was around this time that Tsunade and Jiraiya had found them.

 _"Oh God...Hinata found out."_  Jiraiya thought.  _"And she's probably told him. Shit...this will make things more difficult."_  He took a small step towards the couple. "Naruto..." he said softly.

No response.

Tsunade bit her lower lip. "Naruto...I need to talk to you."

Neither teenager moved. "Leave me alone," was Naruto's whispered reply. "I want to stay here."

Tsunade grimaced and tried to control her emotions as she knelt down next to him. "I want to try some jutsus-see if I can fix the damage."

"Jiraiya..." Naruto said.

Jiraiya winced at hearing Naruto address him as something other than his nickname. "Yes?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" Naruto asked as he slightly tipped his head sideways to look at him.

Jiraiya squeezed his eyes shut. "I didn't know how," he said as he placed a hand on the blonde boy's shoulder.

Naruto closed his eyes. "How long...do I have?"

"Right now, I don't think more than...a month," Jiraiya answered softly.

"We need to go," Tsunade pleaded.

Naruto shook his head almost imperceptibly.

Tsunade sighed. "Jiraiya," she whispered, "take Hinata home. I'll take Naruto."

Jiraiya nodded. As a unit, the two stepped forward, each swiftly grabbing their intended targets. The reaction was instantaneous.

"No! NO!" Hinata screeched, her arms reaching for Naruto as Jiraiya pulled her backward.

"Let me go, dammit!" Naruto yelled as he struggled to get free.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. This is too important," Tsunade said in a pained tone of voice.

"At least let Hina-chan come with us!" Naruto pleaded as he tried to get to the girl in question.

Jiraiya gave Tsunade a questioning look. She nodded and they let Naruto and Hinata go. "Alright," Tsunade relented. Naruto and Hinata were back in each other's arm in an instant. "But let me make something very clear; she gets in the way for even a second and she's going home. Is that understood?" she asked sternly.

Both teens quickly nodded.

* * *

 

Tsunade, seated at a large desk, angrily scratched something out on the notepad in front of her. "DAMN IT! Why can't I figure this out?!"

Jiraiya sighed and rose from his seat across the small room. "You need a break, Tsunade. You've been at this for six hours."

Tsunade pushed off the hand her old friend had placed on her shoulder. "I'm fine," she said with determination as she continued scribbling down her notes.

"Tsunade, you won't do Naruto any good if you can't think straight from exhaustion," Jiraiya reasoned.

Tsunade closed her eyes and sighed. "Alright, but only for an hour. You wake me up any later than that and I'll beat the hell out of you." She stood up and turned off the blue-shaded desk lamp that had been illuminating her work.

Jiraiya nervously cleared his throat. "Right."

* * *

 

Naruto lay in bed in the private hospital ward of his house. Hinata slept in a small cot across from his left side. The room didn't look much different than a regular bedroom. In fact, the only indicators that it was medical in nature were the construction of the bed and the various instruments scattered about.

A thin shaft of light broke the darkness of the room as the door opened. Tsunade stepped softly so as not to disturb the sleeping couple. When she reached the bed she stared at her son's sleeping form. "Just a short break, Naruto. I'll go right back to work after I clear my head." She reached down and gently stroked his forehead. "I won't let you die...I promise," she whispered.

* * *

 

The next morning Naruto felt as though his head was about to split open. Just as he had every time he'd felt pain in the last few months, he forced healing chakra to the place that hurt. He wasn't entirely certain of what he was doing, but he had to be doing something right if he was still alive.  _"Ugh. The pain's not totally gone. Maybe it's getting too bad for me to fix,"_  he thought glumly.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata said as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

Naruto allowed himself a small smile. "Hey, Hina-chan."

Hinata yawned and stretched. "What time is it?"

"About nine-thirty. How'd you sleep?" Naruto asked, trying to keep the conversation away from his condition.

Hinata smiled. "Okay. My neck is a little sore though. Has Tsunade-sama found anything yet?"

Naruto sighed.  _"So much for keeping the conversation normal."_  He took off his sleeping cap. "No. I don't know what she thinks she can do though. She told me the chakra's all mixed together."

"It is...but I think I've found a way around it," came Tsunade's tired voice from the doorway.

The heads of both teens whipped toward the door. "How?!" Naruto demanded.

Tsunade sat down on the end of the bed. "The different chakras did mix properly, but it's the  _amount_  that's out of balance. In six months you still haven't managed to use up enough of your chakra to restore that balance."

"So what do we do?" Hinata asked urgently.

"No problem!" Naruto chimed in. "I'll just make a bunch of Kage Bunshins till it's back to normal," he explained, feeling rather pleased with himself.

Tsunade shook her head. "In your current condition, that would kill you."

Naruto frowned and blew an angry puff of air out of his nose.

"I'm going to teach you Souzou saisei (Genesis Rebirth) no Jutsu," Tsunade said with a firm tone.

Naruto's eyebrows went up. "But won't that hurt me too?"

"It's a gentle technique. Once you've collected enough chakra to the diamond you can use it to perform a mass healing on yourself. This way you get rid of the excess and repair the damage at the same time."

"How long will it take?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"Well, in my case it took a few years, but then, I only used the jutsu for a short time each morning. If you work on it for at least twelve hours a day, you should be able to reach capacity within a week. You also may have to do it more than once, depending on just how much excess chakra there is."

Naruto smiled widely and lowered his head as he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Don't get too relaxed, Naruto. I'm not one-hundred percent sure this will work," Tsunade said with a pained expression.

"Still...thanks, Kaa-san," Naruto said as he gave her a hug.

"For my son, I could do no less," Tsunade said with conviction.

* * *

 

Naruto tried desperately to ignore the pins and needles sensation that was steadily growing in nearly every one of his joints. He sat on his bed, legs crossed, eyes closed and his hands in the tiger seal. He had been working on the Souzou saisei for just over three hours. Although it was driving him crazy, he had actually managed to form a diamond about the size of a grain of sand, which was quite an achievement for someone who'd never used such a jutsu.

Suddenly, his concentration was disrupted when he heard yelling outside his window. He frowned and jumped to his feet, which nearly ended with him falling over due to the fact that his legs were a bit numb. He opened his window to find Sakura verbally facing off with a young, female chuunin.

"That's a lie and I am NOT going to listen to it anymore!" Sakura yelled.

The chuunin glared at her. "Fine! I was just telling you what I heard! You believe what you want!" she said as she turned on her heel and stormed off.

Sakura promptly stuck out her tongue at the retreating back of her opponent. Just then, Naruto came running out of the house.

"Sakura-chan!" he called out with a wave. "What was that all about?" he asked once he had reached her.

Sakura snorted. "Just some jerk telling a," she paused in her statement long enough to turn toward the road where the chuunin could still be seen as a slowly shrinking speck, "TOTAL LIE," only to be answered by a rude hand gesture, barely discernable due to the distance. She turned back to Naruto and her voice regained its normal volume level, "about you."

Naruto's face twisted in confusion. "About me? What was she saying?"

Sakura shook her head in annoyance. "She was trying to tell me someone was listening outside Tsunade-sama's office and they heard her say you were  _dying_ ," she repeated the story in complete disgust. "Can you believe...?" she stopped when she saw the strange look on Naruto's face. "Naruto-kun?"

Naruto gulped. "Come on inside for a second, Sakura-chan," he said softly.

Sakura's frown deepened. "What's wrong?"

Naruto shook his head almost imperceptibly. "Just c'mon," he repeated as he began walking.

Something clicked inside Sakura's head and her breath caught in her throat. She dashed in front of him and grabbed him by the shoulders. "It's not true, is it?!" she asked in a panic.

Naruto's expression was unreadable.

" _Is it_?!" Sakura repeated in a shrill voice.

Naruto simply squeezed his eyes shut, gritted his teeth and lowered his gaze.

"No..." Sakura took the tiniest step backward. "I...I don't understand...How?" she asked as tears welled up in her eyes.

Naruto sighed. "Come on in the house...I'll explain there."

* * *

 

Sakura sat on the couch opposite Naruto, staring at the floor. "So...there's a chance you'll be okay?" she asked quietly without raising her head.

"Yeah." Naruto was silent for a moment before continuing. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan, I won't go down without a fight," he said with determination.

Sakura looked up at him and sniffled. "I don't even want there to  _be_  a down."

Naruto gave his friend a hug and sighed. "I know. Do me a favor though? Please don't tell anyone else."

Sakura broke the hug and frowned at him. "What about Hinata and Sasuke-kun?"

"Hina-chan already knows. Sasuke...He's had enough grief in his life."

"Naruto-kun, he's your brother. He has a right to know," Sakura said with a firm, yet gentle tone.

"If it gets to the point where there's no hope, I'll tell him."

Sakura tilted her head slightly to one side and squinted at the tiny blue dot on Naruto's forehead. "Amazing. You've already gotten it to work."

"Yeah. I was in the middle of it when I heard you yelling." Naruto gave Sakura a half smile. "I better get back to it."

Sakura nodded. "Okay. I'll go apologize to Kagura." She stood to leave. "I'll see you later?"

Naruto gave her a small smile. "You bet."

* * *

 

Two days later, Naruto stared in the mirror at the diamond which was now roughly half the size of his pinkie fingernail. He nodded in satisfaction and decided to go out for a walk to stretch his legs. He was tired of being stuck in the house.

As he was strolling down the main street of Konoha, he noticed a lot of people looking at him strangely.  _"Is that...pity?"_  he thought.  _"Oh please tell me everybody doesn't know..."_

His suspicions were confirmed, however, when he stopped to pick up some chocolates for Hinata. As he started to hand over his money the clerk gently pushed it back at him. "It's on the house today, sweetie." Her voice and her eyes held the same pity he'd been seeing the entire way there.

Naruto gave the kind woman a small smile. "Thanks."

As he left the shop Naruto's heart raced in panic.  _"I gotta find Sasuke...fast."_  He was about to start running when a strong hand came down on his shoulder. He turned around to see Kakashi staring down at him.

"So, here you are. You have to go home right now. Tsunade-sama is worried sick," Kakashi said in a voice that managed to be disapproving and nonchalant at the same time.

Naruto desperately tried to reason with Kakashi. "You don't understand! Everyone knows what's going on. I gotta make sure Sasuke doesn't find out!"

Kakashi's visible eye widened for a second before resuming its normal size. "I think you're already too late."

Naruto turned around to find his elder brother giving him a glare that could melt glacial ice. "Sasuke..."

Kakashi sighed. "I'll give you twenty minutes; after that, I'll be back for you."

"Arigato."

Kakashi leaped away. Naruto stood still for only a moment before making a run for the forest. "Naruto!" Sasuke yelled before giving chase.

 _"I can't talk to him about this in front of all those people."_  He had just broken the civilization/forest border when he began to feel his legs giving out on him. He stumbled and rolled down a hillside, landing on his back at the bottom.

Sasuke saw Naruto fall and ran faster. "Naruto!" He reached to the bottom of the hill in one jump and rushed to Naruto's side. "Are you okay?!"

Naruto turned his head toward Sasuke. "Ow. Depends on what you mean by okay," he groaned.

Sasuke suddenly remembered why he'd been chasing his brother and slugged him in the cheek. "When the hell were you gonna tell me?!" Naruto averted his gaze. "HUH?!" Naruto stayed silent. "Or was I gonna find out when they sent me the funeral notice?!" Still no response. "ANSWER ME GOD DAMN IT!"

Naruto finally found his voice. "I didn't want to say anything till I knew for sure."

"Till you knew for sure that you're DYING?!" Sasuke screamed, gritting his teeth to keep back the tears.

"No! Till I knew for sure that the cure wouldn't work!" Naruto yelled back as he sat up.

"Cure?!" Sasuke asked as his anger melted away and was replaced with hope.

Naruto nodded. "Kaa-san taught me Souzou saisei." He pushed up the hair that had fallen over his forehead. "See?"

Sasuke seemed to relax a little. "So...what's the chance of it working?" he asked as he sat down and folded his arms on his knees.

"Pretty good. We'll know in five days," Naruto replied softly.

Sasuke looked at Naruto. "Okay, but if you die on me, I'll kick your sorry ass all over the afterlife."

Naruto smirked. "Yeah."

* * *

 

On day four Naruto found he was able to sit for five hours without needing to stretch.  _"At least I'll have a lot more patience when this is done,"_  he thought in mild amusement. He heard a knock on his door. "Hai?"

"It's me, Naruto-kun. Can I come in?" Hinata's voice asked.

Naruto smiled. "Sure."

Hinata opened the door. "I brought you Ichiraku for lunch," she said with a smile.

"AH! Hina-chan, you're the best!" Naruto exclaimed as he grabbed the takeout container.

Hinata giggled. "How is the jutsu go..." she paused when she saw the size of the diamond on Naruto's forehead, which was now the size of an adult thumbnail. "S...sugoi. You're amazing, Naruto-kun!"

Naruto nodded his thanks since his mouth was stuffed with ramen.

"Well, it looks like I don't have to call you down to lunch after all," said Tsunade as she stood in the doorway.

Naruto swallowed his latest bite and laughed. "Yeah, now I don't ha..." his sentence was interrupted as his eyes suddenly closed and he fell to the floor. The ramen bowl fell beside him, leaking its contents onto the rug.

"Naruto!" yelled Tsunade as she fell to her knees next to him.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata squeaked. Both she and Tsunade immediately fired up their healing jutsu, all the while chanting prayers in their heads.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Adds motion sensor activated lasers to RPR)) ((Cough))
> 
> Solution next chapter. I promise.


	3. Light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Sits out in front of RPR; having full confidence in her safety) Please review. I love reviews! Thanks!

 

"Come on, Naruto...please!" Tsunade whispered strongly, her face wet with fresh tears.

Hinata didn't speak. She knew if she did, she might lose control of her emotions.

Suddenly Naruto took in a huge breath and his eyes wearily opened. "What happened?"

An immensely relieved smile graced Tsunade's face. "Don't scare me like that," she chided as she gave him a hug.

Once he was released from the hug, Naruto turned his face toward Hinata, who fell onto his chest, sobbing with relief.

Tsunade sighed heavily. "Alright, we can't wait any longer. Naruto, you're going to have to release the jutsu now."

"But it's not finished yet," Naruto replied as he gently pushed himself and Hinata up to a semi-sitting position.

"It doesn't matter, I...I think we almost lost you a minute ago," Tsunade explained.

Naruto was shocked at the look of utter fear in Tsunade's eyes. "But you said I had a month!"

"Obviously, we miscalculated," Tsunade said.

"Okay," Naruto replied. He put his hands in the tiger seal as Hinata moved back a bit to give him room. "Souzou Saisei No Jutsu!"

It was certainly a sight to behold. Hinata had never in her life seen such a beautiful chakra.  _"Naruto-kun..."_

The colors spun in an intricate web around Naruto's body. Not long after, it began to fade and then disappeared altogether, at which point he fell forward a bit. Tsunade and Hinata caught him. He looked up at them with tired eyes. "Did...did it work?"

Hinata instantly put her hand into her usual seal. "Byakugan!" She saw the size of the chakra veins had been greatly reduced and most of the cracks in them were gone. After a tense moment, Hinata smiled and tears of joy rolled down her face. "It worked!" she exclaimed before hugging Naruto tightly.

Naruto smiled widely, laughing through his joyful tears.

Hinata sniffled. "I th...think he should do it one more time though. There was still some damage."

Tsunade nodded. "But for now I think he should rest."

"No kidding. I could sleep for a week," Naruto said with a slight chuckle. He tried to get up but his weakened body simply wouldn't allow it. Tsunade's face broke into a lopsided smile and she picked up her son. "Baa-chan!"

"Deal with it," Tsunade replied. She laid him in his bed and pushed some hair out of his face. "Get some sleep. I'll be downstairs if you need me." She turned to Hinata. "You're welcome to stay for a while if you wish."

"Arigato, Tsunade-sama," Hinata said with a short, polite bow.

Tsunade nodded and then left. As she quietly shut the door she smiled.  _Thank Kami-sama._

 

* * *

Naruto stared in the mirror at the new diamond on his forehead and sighed. "Just one more day and I can get rid of this dumb lookin' thing," he complained to no one.

He threw on his outfit, for which he'd gotten the cuffs extended after his growth spurt. His pants were fine though, they'd been a little too long to begin with. He checked over his hair.  _"Glad I didn't do the ponytail thing. It's just not me."_  Once he was finished with his grooming, he went downstairs for breakfast.

"Ohayo," Naruto said as he sat down at the table.

"Would you like ramen, Naruto-sama?" Izumi asked.

Naruto yawned. "Hai."

"How long until you finish the jutsu?" Tsunade asked.

"I'm gonna release it tomorrow."

Tsunade leaned forward and looked at the diamond. "I think you can do it today."

Naruto perked up. "Really?!"

"Yeah. I think it's big enough to take care of the rest of the damage," Tsunade said with an approving smile.

"Yosh!" Naruto happily exclaimed.

 

* * *

"So, you're okay then?" Sasuke asked of the newly 'diamond free' Naruto.

Naruto smiled widely. "Yeah."

Sakura grabbed her blonde-haired friend in a crushing hug.

Sasuke sighed in relief. "I'm glad." Slightly embarrassed at showing so 'much' emotion in front of Sakura, he added with a smirk, "Now I don't have to waste my time kicking your ass."

Naruto shook his head with a small laugh. "Thanks, Nii-san."

Lee walked by the trio, then back peddled till he was next to them again. "You guys are going to be late getting your mission," he chided.

"Oh. Thanks, Lee-kun," Sakura said with a warm smile. She put a friendly hand on Naruto's shoulder. "We gotta go. See you later."

"Actually, Baa-chan says I'm back on duty," Naruto said with a grin.

Sakura smiled. "Let's go then."

The three fell in step with Lee, and Sakura held his hand. Naruto's eyebrows went up in surprise when he noticed Lee had been growing his hair and that he now had a three-inch long braid in the back. When they reached the Hokage tower, he also noticed that Lee had grown out his bowl cut a bit and now had curtain bangs similar to Sasuke's, only a lot shorter.  _"Huh. Weird how things can change so much in six months."_

 

* * *

Naruto smiled when Hinata waved at him from the front of the assignment line. After a few moments, he saw team eight move to the far side of the room and seat themselves in some of the chairs along the wall. He found it odd since normally they would be leaving to bring the mission to Kurenai.

Once they had reached the front of the line, Tsunade handed team seven a mission packet. "Okay, here's your assignment. Please wait for me over there," she instructed as she waved her hand at the remaining empty seats next to Hinata's team.

Naruto's team wandered over and sat down. "Hey, Hina-chan, do you know what's going on?"

Hinata shook her head.

Once the final assignment had been passed out, Tsunade stood up and walked over to the two teams she had sidelined. "Your jounin instructors will be here shortly."

"Are we in trouble, Sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Not at all. Your teams are joining together for a mission," Tsunade explained.

Naruto and Hinata smiled at each other. "Where are we going?" Naruto asked.

Just then, Kakashi and Kurenai poofed into the room. "Yo," Kakashi greeted.

"You're going to Suna," Tsunade said.

Kurenai was confused. Fellow hidden villages didn't call on help from each other often, due to the fact that they usually had enough of their own forces. "Suna? Is something wrong?"

"Well, nothing is entirely certain yet, but there is a possibility of an Akatsuki attack." Eyes widened all around. "Most of their teams are out on missions and that leaves Suna largely unguarded"

Kakashi was the first to speak. "If it's Akatsuki, why are you only sending two genin teams?"

"As I said, nothing is certain yet—not to mention that if the Akatsuki really _are_ on the move we can't afford to spare a large number of jounin and anbu. You eight will suffice for the time being. Kakashi and Kurenai will be doing any real fighting, should there be a need. The rest of you will mainly be there as extra eyes and ears."

Kakashi nodded. "I'll give you guys an hour to pack. Meet me at the front gates."

Team seven nodded and left. After Kakashi vanished Kurenai looked at her team and sighed. "I suppose we'll do the same. Dismissed."

 

* * *

"Neh, Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked as they walked.

"Hm?" Kakashi answered from the open pages of his book.

"Do you know what happened to Gaara after we got Sasuke back?"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Gaara, huh?" He looked off into the sky. "From what I've been told, he'll be taking his jounin exam soon."

"NANI?!" Jounin exams?! I haven't even made Chuunin yet!" Naruto sputtered.

"He gained a field commission just before you left with Jiraiya and insisted on taking the jounin exam early. It will be interesting to see how he does," Kakashi explained before sticking his nose back into his book.

Kurenai wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Do you have to read that horrible book in front of children?"

Kakashi looked genuinely insulted. "I'll have you know that this is a great literary work."

Seeing that there would be no winning the argument, Kurenai simply shook her head and sighed.

Naruto, meanwhile, was busy grumbling to himself.  _"Why the hell does the one who used to be psycho get to be Chuunin before me?"_

Hinata saw Naruto's incredulous expression and giggled to herself. "Neh, Naruto-kun?"

"Hm?" Naruto asked as he hopped over a large rock.

"When we stop for the night, do you think you could show me the rasengan?" Hinata asked with a slight pink tinge to her cheeks.

Naruto cocked his head to one side in confusion. "Eh? You've seen it."

"N...not with the niji chakra," Hinata replied in a small voice.

Naruto walked closer to her. "Why does the niji chakra make a difference?"

Hinata's blush deepened. "I...I think it's pretty."

Now it was Naruto's turn to blush. "Oh..."

Sakura fell in step with Naruto and Hinata. "So did Tsunade-sama finish studying your chakra?" she directed to Naruto.

"Hai." A bird interrupted Naruto's thoughts for a moment as it flew overhead. Once it was gone, he turned back to Sakura. "She said it's still more chakra than normal, but that it's...compact, denser. She also said I probably have more chakra than any ninja alive," he answered with an unsure tone to his voice.

Sakura's eyes widened before her face settled into a slight frown. "That sounds a little scary."

Naruto looked worried. "You're not scared of me now...are you Sakura-chan?"

Sakura shook her head. "No no—that's not what I meant. I mean it must be scary for you."

"Why?"

Sakura sighed. "Maybe it's just me. It's just that having that kind of power inside myself would be...I would be terrified of losing control."

"I was a little scared before Ero-sennin helped me, but I'm totally fine now," Naruto answered with a grin.

"Really?" Sakura asked.

"Totally," Naruto reassured her.

"I'm glad," Sakura replied.

 

* * *

Hinata stared at the ball of swirling colors and white light in wonder. "It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," she said softly.

Naruto smiled. "Thanks." He stopped the jutsu and fell backward onto the soft grass of the hill they were on. "I could just fall asleep right here," he said with a sigh.

Hinata smiled and laid down next to him. "I love the stars. I used to wish on them...a lot."

Naruto rolled over to look at her. "How come you don't anymore?"

Hinata turned her head toward him. "I got my wish," she said happily.

Naruto's only answer was an ear to ear grin. Suddenly, he closed the gap between them, put his left arm and leg over her and snuggled his face into the spot where her neck met her shoulder—sighing happily.

Hinata froze. She had absolutely no idea how to address her current...situation. She knew he didn't mean anything perverted by it, but it still made the blood rush to her face until she was as red as the crimson liquid itself. "N...N-N-N-Naruto-kun? A...ano...?"

At Hinata's stuttered words, a flash of Tsunade entered Naruto's mind.  _((I want you two in separate sleeping bags.))_  Naruto suddenly realized what he had done and jumped off the confused girl like she was a poisonous snake. "AH! Sorry, sorry, sorry!" he said, waving his hands frantically in the space between them.

Hinata swallowed. "N-no. I'm sorry. I sh-shouldn't have reacted like that," she answered as her fingers reverted to their old habits.

"No! Totally not your fault. I shouldn't have done that in the first place."

Both teens were quiet for a moment before Naruto broke the silence. "Hina-chan?"

"Y-yes?" Hinata answered softly.

"Do...do you think it's perverted...to hold you that way?" Naruto asked with a shaky voice.

Hinata thought for a moment. "N-no...not as long as nothing else h-happens...I think," she said before swallowing down her nerves.

"Then...then can I?" Naruto asked with great trepidation.

Hinata considered this for a moment before nodding with a small smile.

Naruto smiled back and, while taking great care to make certain his face didn't wind up anywhere indecent, resumed the position he had a moment ago.

"Naruto-kun?"

"Hm?"

"I think I would like it better if we switched places," Hinata said softly.

Naruto smiled. "Sounds good."

After a moment of rearranging, Hinata had her head on Naruto's chest. His right arm held her tight as they stared at the blanket of stars in the night sky.

From his hiding place, Kakashi's face crinkled into a smile. "Looks like Tsunade-sama had nothing to worry about after all."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Figured you guys could use some happy after the last two chaps. Lol. Next chapter I will attempt to write Gaara for the first time.


	4. Kitsune and Tanuki

 

He peered out over the village from his perch atop the huge Kazekage complex. He'd just heard the news that there were some visitors headed towards Suna and he was watching the entrance with great interest. Or at least, inwardly he had great interest—outwardly he was the usual, stoic shell that was the norm for Subaku No Gaara.  _"So...Uzumaki Naruto...eh?"_  The wind swirled his hair about as the sky turned golden due to the sun beginning its daily descent. He squinted as eight silhouetted figures appeared at the gates—one of them having an unmistakable crop of spiky hair.  _"Perhaps I will finally have my questions answered."_

 

* * *

The place was enormous...and it annoyed the hell out of Naruto.  _"When I become Hokage I am_ _ **so**_ _making the tower bigger"_  he thought defiantly as he stalked inside behind Kakashi. He didn't notice the pair of icy teal eyes that watched him very closely. 

" _What is your secret?"_  Gaara thought as he watched Naruto, who was very energetically saying something to his jounin instructor for which he was quickly punched on top on the head by his pink-haired team mate. The yell of 'BAKA!' that followed caused Gaara to cock an eyebrow in amusement, which was currently the closest thing he had to a laugh.  _"I_ _ **know**_ _you are like me. Somehow..."_

 

* * *

The room was fairly bland; apparently, the Kazekage had little interest in decorations. He sat in the lotus position at the far end of the room. He was thin, yet healthy in build, and of average height. His short, dark brown hair had bits of silver scattered throughout and his eyes were a dark hazel. Anbu guards flanked him on both sides. "Welcome, Kakashi, Kurenai," he said as he nodded to each of them. He waved a graceful hand at a row of pillows on the floor in front of him. "Please, sit." The Konoha jounin nodded respectfully and complied.

After studying them for a moment, he let a polite smile slide onto his angular face. "As you know, we have reason to believe the Akatsuki may pay us a visit in the near future. Naturally, I find this a bit unnerving while most of my higher ranked shinobi are absent—which is why you are here."

"Have you decided where we will be posted?" Kurenai asked.

"Indeed I have." The Kazekage unrolled a scroll, which had a map of Suna on it. "Kakashi and Kurenai—your stations will be here and here," he said, pointing to the giant guard outpost the made up the front wall of the village. "You children," he said with a bit of disdain, "will be in these towers." Several round spots on the map indicated the location of the lookout towers.

Two Chuunin entered the room. "Chihoko and Yasuomi will show you to your quarters. You will relieve the Suna shinobi in two hours," said the Kazekage.

The Konoha teams nodded in agreement and stood to leave. As they walked out, however, Kakashi put a hand on Kurenai's shoulder. "I'll catch up with you in a bit."

Kurenai looked confused but nodded anyway. "Okay."

Once the others were gone, Kakashi turned to the Kazekage. "With all due respect, Kazekage-sama—do you have a problem with my students?"

The Kazekage arched an eyebrow slightly. "To be honest with you, Kakashi, I feel a bit slighted that the Godaime sent mere gennin into such a serious situation and I'm not convinced they can do the job asked of them."

Kakashi frowned but it quickly evolved into a smile. "Don't worry, Kazekage-sama. I know these kids. Even though they hold the rank of gennin, four of them have taken on 'S' class missions."

Now both the Kazekage's eyebrows went up. "Then why, pray tell, are they still gennin?"

Kakashi smirked under his mask. "Although they are strong enough to be chuunin, they have yet to develop leadership skills."

"Ah, I see. Then why not simply teach them some?" the Kazekage suggested in a somewhat condescending tone.

"Hm?"

"Teach them some. You are their sensei, are you not?"

Kakashi cocked his head to the side. "True. Although with Naruto..."

"Naruto...Uzumaki Naruto?!" the Kazekage interrupted suddenly.

Kakashi was a bit perturbed. "What about him?"

"Isn't he the Kyuubi's container?!" the Kazekage asked hotly.

"Was," Kakashi corrected. "The Kyuubi is dead. And it wouldn't have mattered either way. The seal was secure. You wouldn't have been in any danger."

The Kazekage calmed down considerably. "My concern was not for myself, but my citizens." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Wait, shouldn't he be dead also if the Kyuubi is gone?"

Kakashi flinched a bit. "There were...unique circumstances."

"How so?"

Kakashi adjusted his headband. "To sum it up...Naruto is now the world's only holder of the niji chakra."

The Kazekage's eyes showed his disbelief. "That's impossible. The niji chakra is only a legend."

Kakashi found this amusing. "Then Naruto is a walking legend."

The Kazekage thought for a moment. "I would like to see this chakra," he said suddenly.

"I'm not going to let anyone turn Naruto into a guinea pig," Kakashi warned.

"Nothing of the sort, Kakashi. However, when someone is told that there is a unicorn in their midst don't you think it natural they would want to see it?"

"Hm. I suppose so—but only if he agrees to show you."

The Kazekage nodded. "Of course."

 

* * *

The Kazekage watched Naruto's chakra in awe. "I never would have believed it, had I not seen it with my own eyes."

Naruto stopped molding chakra and smiled nervously.

The Kazekage put a hand on his shoulder. "You have something amazing there, young man. Be responsible with it," he warned in a kindly way.

Naruto put his hand up in a salute. "Osu! A future Hokage's gotta be responsible, right?" he said with a grin.

The Kazekage cocked an eyebrow in amusement. "Future Hokage, eh?" After staring at the boy for a moment a warm smile graced his features. "Watching you will be interesting." And with that, he walked away.

 

* * *

Naruto sighed again, which severely irritated his tower-mate. "Will you stop that?!" Kiba complained.

Naruto lolled his head backward. "I can't help it. This is boring as hell."

"Look, I'm bored too, but hearing you sigh every five seconds is gonna make me kill myself!" Kiba said loudly.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said sulkily. He looked over the rocky outcroppings at the edge of the village and noticed a certain red-haired ninja watching him from the top of a huge boulder.  _"What the hell is he staring at me for?"_ he thought as his eye twitched in irritation. He turned toward Kiba. "I'll be back in a sec."

"What? You're not leaving me with this stupid job by myself."

Naruto stepped up onto the edge of the tower wall. "I'll just be a sec. I saw someone I know," he replied before leaping away.

Kiba glared after his friend, but did not follow. "Damn him."

 

* * *

Gaara's face wore a bored expression as he watched Naruto coming toward him. "Hmpf," he said in curiosity.

"Gaara!" Naruto yelled just before jumping onto the same rock as his target.

Gaara just looked at him. "Hai?"

"Why the heck were you staring at me?" Naruto demanded.

Gaara's eyebrows went up in irritation at the finger that was now rudely pointed at his face. "No particular reason."

Naruto's eye twitched. "You don't just go staring at people for no reason!" he said as he sat down.

"Why are you sitting?" Gaara asked curtly.

"If you have a right to stare at me for no reason then I can sit next to you for no reason!" Naruto retorted.

Gaara sighed and decided to stare at a chipmunk. Of course, Naruto decided this was an invitation to ask what seemed like pointless questions to someone he barely knew. "So...how've you been?"

Gaara looked at him as if he'd just asked him what his underwear size was.

Naruto looked away. "Erm...yeah, so, I was wondering..."

Gaara gave him a quizzical look.

Naruto cleared his throat. "Right...um...I'll just...go..." he said uncomfortably as he stood up.

"What?" Gaara said suddenly.

Naruto looked down at Gaara. "Huh?"

"You were wondering...what?" Gaara asked.

Naruto was a bit perplexed as he sat back down. "I was wondering...if things got better for you."

"What do you mean?" Gaara asked as he looked at the boy next to him.

"I wanted to know if life got better for you after we fought."

Gaara was silent for a moment as he pondered his answer. "Why?"

"Because we're so alike," Naruto answered quietly.

Gaara stared at the boy next to him, wondering just how on Earth he was like this loudmouth. "What do you mean?" he asked with such urgency that it made Naruto flinch.

"It's hard to explain..."

Gaara could take it no longer. "Tell me! Tell me how someone so happy is like me!" he demanded desperately.

Naruto looked down. "I had a monster inside of me...too."

Gaara's eyes could not have gotten any wider. His expression melted into one of regretful understanding. "I'm...sorry."

"That's okay. I don't blame you. I might've reacted the same way if..." Images of friends and family flashed through Naruto's mind. "...if I hadn't found people who care about me."

"Which of the biju do you carry?" Gaara asked.

"Well, I used to carry the Kyuubi," Naruto carefully replied.

Gaara's eyes widened again and then his expression changed to confusion. "You don't have it anymore? How was it removed without killing you?"

"He wasn't removed. He died. Orochimaru used a seal jutsu to poison his chakra and then he...Let's just say he hurt me bad enough that when Kyuubi tried to heal me it killed him."

Gaara looked at Naruto for a moment as if studying him. "What was your childhood like?" he asked finally.

"Probably pretty close to yours. People hating me like I was the youma I carried, people trying to kill me and make it look like an accident, people...people calling me...monster..." Naruto answered with his head down so that his hair covered his eyes.

Memories of Suna citizens calling him that exact word flooded Gaara's mind. His expression was a mixture of understanding and pain. "Monster—That is a word I know all too well," he said in a harsh whisper.

Naruto looked straight into Gaara's eyes. "No offense, but it kinda scares me to know the other way I coulda turned out," he said sadly.

Gaara closed his eyes. "Understandable."

"That's why I wanna know what your life is like now. I need to know...if I could've been saved," Naruto said quietly.

Gaara's eyes softened a bit in understanding. He allowed himself a small smile. "Yes."

Naruto smiled in relief. "I'm glad."

"There's something I have wanted to say for a long time now." Gaara took a long breath and looked down. "I wanted to thank you. I...owe you a debt...that I don't think I will ever be able to repay."

Naruto smiled. "Nah. Just knowing that I wouldn't have been past hope is good enough for me."

Gaara looked at Naruto quizzically. "You are a strange person."

"Huh?"

"If someone owed me a debt like the one I owe you, I would ask for much more than piece of mind," Gaara answered.

Naruto grinned. "Well how bout you treat me to ramen then?"

Gaara simply sighed and shook his head in defeat. "Fine then. Find me after your shift is over. Everyone in this village knows what I look like, so you shouldn't have a problem."

"Okay. Ja!" Naruto answered with a quick salute before jumping off toward the tower he'd been in previously.

Gaara stared after the blue and green blur for a moment. "Definitely strange."

 


	5. The Art of Battle

 

He walked into the Kazekage's office and found Gaara seated to the leader's right. The Kazekage looked up and smiled. "Ah, Naruto. What is it that you need?"

"I was looking for Gaara," Naruto stated.

The Kazekage held up a finger. "He'll be with you in a moment." He turned back to Gaara. "Now, you do understand that this will not be an easy task to accomplish? More than half of the village still fears you."

"I understand. I will do what is necessary," Gaara said with a hint of a smile.

The Kazekage put his hand on Gaara's shoulder. "Good man," he said with a warm smile.

Gaara nodded and slowly stood to leave. It was as if he were slightly in shock. "Let's go," he said to Naruto as he walked by the blonde.

Naruto remembered the instructions Kakashi had given him and gave the Kazekage a short bow before leaving. "Sorry to interrupt you." Inwardly, he was twitching at having to be so formal, but Kakashi had promised to cut off his ramen supply if he wasn't polite. He and Gaara left the building.

 

* * *

The buildings all had a rounded finish to them, the streets contained a fair number of people and all the shops were lit. Naruto watched Gaara as the sand nin walked. He seemed to be in deep thought and it left Naruto wondering. "Neh, Gaara?"

Gaara didn't look at him. "Hm?"

"What was the Kazekage talking about?"

"Don't you ever leave people to their own business?" Gaara asked in irritation.

Naruto sighed. "You're right...Sorry."

They passed a street light and Gaara spoke again. "I'm not going to be a jounin..." he stated in a far off voice.

Naruto frowned. He had been jealous of Gaara's potential promotion. Now he felt like a jerk. "I'm sorry."

"He asked me to succeed him as Kazekage..." Gaara nearly whispered.

"WHAT?!" Naruto yelled, causing Gaara to wince.

"Must you be so loud?" Gaara grumbled.

They walked past a roughly six-year-old little girl in a flowered kimono splashing in a puddle. She had looked up when she heard Naruto's loud protest and saw Gaara. Her eyes went wide, then she dropped her odango and screamed before running away. "MOMMYYYYYY!"

Gaara closed his eyes and sighed. "But with reactions like that, I don't see how that's possible."

"Well, his decision is final isn't it?" Naruto offered.

"Not without the approval of the council," Gaara countered. He suddenly looked contemplative. "I wonder if things would have been different if he had been my father."

"He took over after your dad was killed, right?" Naruto asked carefully.

"Nhm," Gaara said. They came upon a large restaurant with a neon sign on the front. The sign was a bowl of ramen with a chicken relaxing in it like a hot spring. Words under the sign read: 'The Ramen Farm'. "We're here," Gaara said and then headed inside.

 

* * *

The inside of The Ramen Farm lived up to its name. The walls looked like those of a barn and there was farm paraphernalia everywhere. The tables were a light-colored wood and the "chairs" were bales of hay. "This place is great!" Naruto exclaimed.

Suddenly a timid man with dark hair and glasses was in front of the pair. "G-G-G-Gaara-sama," he bowed low, "p-please forgive me for not showing you to a table the moment you walked in!"

Naruto took Gaara's sigh and rolling of his eyes to mean that this sort of thing happened a lot and decided to help. "Aw, you don't have to worry about him anymore," he said with a grin. The restaurant manager's eyes went wide as dinner plates as he watched Gaara carefully—trying to look for signs of an attack, "He's a good guy now," he said with a thumbs up.

The poor manager looked like he would pass out from fear at any second and then...

"Could you just show us to a table, please?" Gaara said with his arms folded and a look of exasperation.

The manager cleared his throat in order to calm his nerves. "O...Of course, Gaara-sama. Right this way please."

Naruto and Gaara followed the manager as he led them to a table near the back. They sat down and the manager turned to them. "Your waitress will be with you in a moment," he said with a smile before leaving the boys by themselves.

"So, you get that a lot?" Naruto asked as he picked up the menu.

"Yeah," Gaara replied just as a waitress with her black hair tied up like dango greeted them.

"H-Hello, Gaara-sama," said the nervous girl.

Without looking up from his menu, Gaara replied, "Konbonwa, Kurumi-san."

Kurumi's pen and order pad promptly fell from her hands to the floor. For a moment she stood there, open-mouthed.  _"He said my name...Since when does he remember my name?"_  She let out a calming breath.  _"Alright Kurumi-chan—step one accomplished. Now I just have to get him to talk to me. Yeah, right. Like that'll ever happen."_  She picked up her belongings and swallowed. "Konbonwa t-to you too, G-Gaara-sama," she said with a smile.

Gaara looked up in surprise. Never before had he heard this girl say more than her name. "I will have the pork ramen with sushi and get my companion whatever he wants."

Kurumi looked over at Naruto.  _"Oh my God, he's cute,"_  she thought with a blush.  _"Down girl, it's Gaara-sama you like."_

"I'll have...ummm...Aw heck with it. I'll have one of everything!" Naruto said with a grin.

For the first time in his life, a look of wide-eyed surprise and trepidation graced Gaara's features.

Kurumi looked at her crush and suppressed a giggle. "I-Is that okay, Gaara-sama?"

Gaara's face returned to normal as he considered his answer. "Yeah."

Kurumi smiled. "Okay." She almost walked away but stopped. "And Gaara-sama?" She leaned over to Gaara's ear. "I'm glad you have a friend," she whispered happily. She walked away, leaving a very perplexed Gaara in her wake.

Gaara looked over at Naruto, who now wore a look of utter amusement. "What?"

"She likes you," Naruto teased.

Gaara cocked an eyebrow. "I think you're seeing things."

Just then Kurumi returned with some sodas. "Here you are," she said cheerfully as she handed one to Naruto. She turned to Gaara, her cheeks gaining a bit of extra color. "And this one's for you, Gaara-sama."

Gaara took the drink. "Arigato."

Naruto chuckled softly. "She definitely likes you."

Gaara shot Naruto a look of irritation and then sighed. "Even if she did like me, I wouldn't pursue her."

"Why? She's really cute."

"Think, Naruto—what would happen to her if she was seen holding hands with me?" Gaara said sadly.

A look of realization crossed Naruto's face and he looked down. "Oh..."

Gaara looked up to see several wait staff coming toward them with trays.

The first plates were set down in from of them and Naruto happily cracked his chopsticks. "Itadakimasu!"

* * *

Naruto happily patted his rounded belly as he exited the restaurant. "Thanks, Gaara! That place was awesome!"

Kurumi's voice entered Gaara's head.  _(("I'm glad you found a friend."))_  "Neh, Naruto?"

"Hm?"

"What's it like...to have friends?" Gaara asked.

The question took Naruto by surprise, but he quickly regained his cheerfulness. "Just like this," he exclaimed as he waved a hand at Gaara.

Gaara was startled. "Like this? You mean...you consider me a friend?"

Naruto smiled. "Sure. Why not?"

"I tried to kill you. I tried to kill your friends. Why would you want to be friends with me?" Gaara asked seriously.

Naruto's face took on a slightly more serious visage. "Because we're the same."

Gaara shook his head. "But even that shouldn't be enough for you to forgive me for the things I've done."

"Yeah. But I also know that you wouldn't have done them if your life had been better...If you'd had friends," Naruto explained with a compassionate smile.

"I see."

"So how bout it?" Naruto asked with his hand held out. "Friends?"

Gaara looked at Naruto's hand for a moment before grabbing it. "Sure," he said with a smile.  _"Well, this will be interesting."_

 

* * *

She was getting tired. Hinata'd had her Byakugan activated for almost a half hour now. She was about to turn it off when she noticed two genjutsu disguised figures kneeling behind some trees. "Sasuke, I see some suspicious people."

Sasuke kept his composure. "How far out are they?"

"Around eight hundred feet," Hinata said with a smile to hide her unease. She was also careful to make sure her mouth was not at what would be the proper position for lip reading.

"I'll inform the Kazekage. You keep an eye on them," Sasuke instructed.

"Hai," Hinata replied.

Sasuke leaped away, leaving a nervous Hinata to watch the potential attackers.

 

* * *

"Naruto-kun!"

Naruto and Gaara looked behind them to see Sakura moving toward them at top speed. "Sakura-chan?"

"Hinata spotted something!" Sakura said as she skidded to a halt, leaving wispy trails of dust in her wake. "They're sending out Kankuro as a scout. Kazekage-sama wants us to stay casual, but find something to do near the east side of the village—just in case."

Naruto looked at Gaara. "What's there to do on the east side?"

Gaara thought for a moment, trying desperately to come up with an idea that didn't involve food. He didn't want to empty his wallet any further than he had to. He finally sighed in defeat. "There's an ice cream shop that's not far from the wall."

"Ice...cream?" Naruto repeated as though testing out the unfamiliar word.

Gaara cocked an eye ridge. "Just how backward  _is_  Konoha?"

Naruto shot Gaara a glare. "We're not backward!"

"Naruto, any other village is modern enough to have the new things that come from the west. It's a dessert," Gaara explained with a small smile of amusement.

Naruto was fuming, but Sakura put her hand on her shoulder. "Come on, Naruto-kun—let's try it. It might be good," she said with a calming smile.

"Fine..." Naruto folded his arms and pouted a little. "...but we're still not backward."

 

* * *

Naruto stared curiously at the sign on the building in front of him. It had a picture of a blob of colorful...something, sitting on top of what looked like a waffle. He felt a hand tugging on his sleeve. "Will you quit staring and come on?" Sakura chided.

Naruto blinked back his thoughts and followed the others into the shop.

 

* * *

She tensely watched Kankuro's outline as he moved through the trees. Once in a while, she would look, without turning her head, at the two people she had seen earlier. They had moved a bit closer but had otherwise remained unchanged in their actions. Hinata had been told to keep an eye on the puppet user just in case things went sour, but she was still uncomfortable. "Are you sure he'll be alright by himself?" she asked Sasuke.

Sasuke frowned. "I don't know—but sending out only one scout keeps the risk of discovery low, so it's unavoidable."

Hinata sighed and resumed her watch.

 

* * *

Kankuro was confident in his fighting ability, but he still wasn't thrilled with the idea of possibly being forced to face Akatsuki members by himself, should he be discovered. He sent his puppet ahead, looked around with it for a moment and rejoined it when he was sure the coast was clear. He repeated this pattern until he was near the area Hinata had said the intruders occupied. He scanned the forest floor.  _"Alright, now where are you?"_

"Someone's watching us," Sasori said with no real interest in his voice.

Deidara smiled. "We gonna go after him, Sasori no Danna (A/N- Master Sasori)?"

"Of course. You can do it if you like," Sasori replied as he continued observing the village.

"You bet—yeah," Deidara said as he made a small clay spider and sent it on its way.

 

* * *

Hinata's eyes widened when she saw the odd looking spider-thing climbing up the tree. "Sasuke-san! Kankuro is in danger!" she whispered sharply.

"Do we have time to get to him?!" Sasuke asked.

"I don't know."

"You find Naruto! I'll tell the anbu captain!" Sasuke leaped away. As he sailed over the rooftops his mind drifted to a thought that made his heart pound fiercely.  _"If it's Itachi...this might be my chance..."_

 

* * *

Kankuro's face crinkled into a calculating frown as he caught sight of his quarry.  _"Damn. It is Akatsuki."_  He was about to leap from his perch and head back to the village when he felt something crawling on his leg. He looked down.  _"A spider?"_  As the arachnid climbed higher he noticed it seemed very unnatural and suddenly realized it was some kind of attack.  _"SHIT!"_  The spider exploded and Kankuro, covered in flames, fell to the ground.

 

* * *

He stared at the brown lump in the bowl in front of him and then at the tiny spoon in his hand. "How the heck am I supposed to get any food to stay on this thing?" Naruto asked as he pointed to the western spoon.

"You scoop," Gaara stated plainly. Just then, Sakura took a bite of her vanilla and her eyes widened for just a moment before she began rapidly eating spoonful after spoonful.

Naruto looked at her in shock. Sakura had always been so lady-like anytime they'd eaten together. "Sakura-chan?"

Gaara cocked an eye ridge. "Sakura, I strongly suggest you don't eat that so fast."

"Why?" Naruto asked.

Suddenly, Sakura dropped her spoon and her hands flew to her forehead. "Ahhhh!" she cried in pain.

Naruto was instantly concerned. "Sakura-chan!" he yelled as he grabbed her shoulder.

"Don't worry, Naruto. It happens when a person doesn't give their head time to adjust to the cold by eating too quickly. It will pass in a moment," Gaara explained calmly.

Sakura slowly removed one of her hands and groaned. "So, if I eat slower that won't happen?" she asked hoarsely.

"Right," Gaara replied just before taking a bite of his strawberry ice cream.

As Sakura resumed  _slowly_  eating her ice cream, Naruto tried to take a scoop of his chocolate—it slid off the spoon and straight down his shirt. "Gyah!" he said as he shook out the offending lump of cold. He frowned at his bowl and took another scoop—this one made it to his mouth. His eyes widened and smiled. "This stuff is  _awesome_!" He had only taken around four bites when Hinata burst into the shop.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out as she caught sight of him. "Kankuro-san is in danger!" she said through her slightly heavy breathing.

Gaara's head snapped upwards. "Kankuro?!" With an expression that was full of concern, he turned to Naruto. "Naruto, let's go!"

Naruto nodded sharply. "Hai!"

Hinata turned around and bolted for the meeting spot beside the tower she and Sasuke had been posted to. Naruto and Gaara followed her closely.

Gaara gritted his teeth. He was angry that he allowed himself to be sidetracked.  _"Kankuro, hang on!"_

 

* * *

Kankuro dragged himself out of the bindings that had held him on the back of his puppet. His forehead was bleeding and he had a few second-degree burns. "Damn it! What the hell was that thing!?" he growled. He heard a footstep behind him and grimaced.  _"Shit!"_

A smiling Deidara stepped in front of Kankuro. "Wasn't it beautiful?" He clenched his fist in pride. "The grace of the spider and the raw power of an explosion. It's perfect art—yeah."

Kankuro took his opponent's gloating as a chance to act. He flicked one of his fingers and his puppet shot forward. Deidara dodged backward into the trees. "Impressive—yeah. I thought you'd be down for the count, but you used that puppet as a shield—yeah." He smiled. "It'll be nice to fight a fellow artist. It's almost a shame you have to die—yeah."

" _Damn, he's fast. I'll need to plan a little further ahead."_

Deidara put some of his clay into the mouth in his hand. A moment later five clay birds were flying towards Kankuro. He managed to dodge them before Deidara made them explode, but the concussive force of the bombs still sent him flying sideways. He hit the ground hard.

Deidara frowned. "Maybe fighting you won't be so interesting. It's disappointing—yeah." Suddenly, six small puppets in the form of praying mantises flew out from the trees and began slicing at Deidara with the blades attached to their sickle-like arms. He began grabbing them and throwing them off, but they kept coming back, so he smashed them together instead. It was only a few moments before all the puppets were destroyed. "You'll have to do better than that—yeah."

Kankuro smirked. "Look around you."

Deidara's eyes widened in shock just before the ninja wire that had encircled him (Thanks to Kankuro's puppets) was pulled tight, sending him hurtling toward the waiting open belly of Kankuro's main puppet. He quickly threw a bird bomb into it and the resulting explosion pushed him backward out of harm's way. He was smiling as he pushed himself to his feet, wincing a bit as the pain of his newly broken rib hit him. "You'll pay for that—yeah.

 


	6. Force

Several small birds suddenly flew from the mouths on Deidara's hands toward Kankuro who, having no time to react, braced himself for the oncoming pain. The birds hit and Deidara smiled. His smile dropped quickly, however, when he noticed the thin wall of sand becoming visible as the smoke dissipated. He looked to his right to see a very angry Gaara flanked by two jounin and several lower ranked ninja, including a certain spiky blonde that he recognized from the Akatsuki's target photos.  _"The niji chakra kid. This could get tough—hmm."_

Sasori's voice sounded from behind Deidara. "A Jinchuuriki and the science experiment. Should be interesting," he said.

Deidara looked at Sasori. "What should we do Sasori no Danna?"

Sasori took a step forward. "We fight."

 

* * *

The Kazekage waited impatiently for the rest of his troops to emerge from the sprawling village. Several chuunin jumped up to the tops of the group of buildings near the cliff. He scanned them. There were only twenty.  _"What a time to be short-handed"_  He let out a large breath. "Alright! Let's go!"

A resounding affirmative shout sounded throughout the ranks just before they all jumped onto the cliff and began to run.

 

* * *

Deidara smirked. "Hmm." He took his hand out of the clay pouch he carried and released a small bird onto the rocky ground. He used a seal and the bird grew large enough that he could ride it. He jumped on and took off into the sky.

Gaara looked to his elder brother. "Kankuro—are you alright?"

Kankuro nodded. "Nhm."

"Good." Gaara set his jaw. "Then I'm going bird hunting." With that, sand roared upwards. He leaped onto it as it flashed past and set off in pursuit of Deidara.

Sasori saw the Kazekage and roughly twenty more troops join Gaara's. "Well now—that makes things almost even," he said with a smile in his voice. He reached into the folds of his cloak, pulled out a scroll and unrolled it with a fluid flick of his wrist. His hand formed a seal and several popping noises were heard, followed by a large cloud of smoke, which dissipated to reveal ten humanoid puppets. His opponents drew their weapons and fell into battle stances. "Now then, let's dance, shall we?"

 

* * *

Gaara floated on his carpet of sand, arms folded—glaring at Deidara as if daring him to move.  _"What's he waiting for?"_  he thought.

Deidara kept a wary eye on Gaara as his hand mouths finished their work.  _"Damn. I didn't bring much clay, to begin with, and that puppet guy made me use almost a quarter of it."_  He looked down as the mouths spit out their finished products.  _"It's time. I'll have to take him down fast—hmm."_  He shot forward, throwing the birds he had made as he went. One after another, Gaara's sand crushed them into pulp.

"Hmpf. Is that it?" Gaara said with a small smirk. His guard sand shot forward again and again, barely missing the clay user. He raised his hands and a wall of sand came rising from the desert terrain that blasted towards Deidara in the shape of Shukaku's claws.

" _Shit."_  Deidara thought as he narrowly escaped the attacks aimed at him. He pulled an aerial u-turn and shot out several larger birds as soon as he was facing the right direction again.

Gaara frowned as he blocked the explosives.  _"They're getting faster."_

 

* * *

Sasori's tail shot forward in an attempt to impale Naruto. Naruto dodged with a backflip and landed fifteen feet from his previous position. The Kazekage didn't like the looks of the stinger on the end of the tail. "Everyone—watch yourselves—that tail is most likely poisoned!" he shouted. "Use ranged attacks as much as possible!"

Kakashi looked at the puppets and noticed they all had similar 'stingers' in various places.  _"Shit. Looks like they're all poisoned. This is bad."_  He turned to his right. "Sakura, we may need your medical techniques more than originally planned—Are you up to it?"

Sakura nodded sharply. "Umh!"

Hinata jumped on top of a large rock in order to dodge the needle-like claws of one of the puppets.  _"What should I do? All of my attacks are close range and jyuken won't work on puppets."_  She backflipped off the rock as Sasori's tail smashed the top of it to rubble.

The Kazekage was suddenly in front of Sasori, blocking Hinata from view. "I will be your opponent!"

"It really doesn't make a difference. All of you are going to die," Sasori calmly stated.

A Suna chuunin screamed as one of Sasori's puppets ripped a chunk out of his side with its razor-sharp, metal teeth. The Kazekage's eyes momentarily flickered in that direction and he nearly paid for it with his life. Sasori's stinger came within an inch of his leg as he hopped backward out of its reach.

In his side vision, Naruto noticed the Kazekage pull a pair of twin katana from the scabbards on his back. As the Kazekage slid into a taijutsu form Naruto's eyes widened.  _"That stance!"_  An image of the girl he had killed in Ganshou flashed in his mind.

"Danshingu kaze no jutsu!" A swirl of wind embedded with chakra pushed the Kazekage about two feet into the air. He pointed his feet and the chakra began to spin him.

In his mind's eye, Naruto saw an image of the girl moving in synch with the man in front of him as though the two were one person.  _"She was from the sand?!"_

As the swords spun Sasori tried to use his stinger, but the swords were pulsing with chakra and made deep gouges in the tail as they knocked it away.  _"Hmm. Seems I need to change tactics."_ He jabbed his tail into the soft sand. It emerged underneath his opponent, aiming for his leg.

The Kazekage had noticed Sasori's tail go down and by the time it had come back up he had used the wind as a springboard to launch himself fifteen feet in the air. He landed artfully eight feet away.  _"That tail is a serious problem. I need to take it out of commission."_

 

* * *

Baki opened up the large, heavy door that was the entrance to an old building that sat upon the high cliff. After a short walk through a hallway, he arrived at another door, which he stared at for a moment. "I hope they're still alive."

 

* * *

A very ancient looking old man watched with indifference as his equally ancient sister fished the small pool of water in the middle of the dome-shaped room in vain. "You'll never catch anything, you know."

The sister didn't move. "True enough. But if you know of something better to do, then please enlighten me," she replied.

The old man sighed. "Point taken." He suddenly cocked his head to one side. "Well, I'll be damned..."

"Too late," the sister interrupted.

The old man glared at his sister. "As I was a- _bout_  to say...we have a guest."

The sister opened her eyes more than the slits they had been previously and looked to the door. "Indeed."

The door creaked open and in stepped Baki. He walked toward them. "Honored siblings, I have come to seek your aid."

"I have no wish to leave this room. Please be on your way," the sister said as she jiggled the line of her fishing pole a bit in order to entice fish that didn't exist.

Baki bowed low. "Onegai, Chiyo-sama. We are under attack. It's Sasori..." he said with emphasis.

Chiyo cocked an eyebrow and looked at her brother. "Well, it looks like I may be able to see my grandson again after all." She slowly rose to her feet and turned to Baki. "Let's go then."

 

* * *

Bug swarms exploded forward out of Shino's sleeves and surrounded the puppet facing himself and two sand nins. They landed on the puppet and worked themselves into the joints. After a moment, the puppet was unable to move. "Now!" Shino commanded.

The sand jounin put their hands into a seal. "Kaze no Yaiba!" they shouted in chorus. Blades of wind sliced through the puppet, thoroughly turning it into kindling.

Sasuke tried to make his Chidori hit, but he hadn't worked much on his speed since the chuunin exam finals and the puppet was fast. "Damn you! Hold still!" he said angrily as he went in for a second shot. He grazed the puppet's side—taking off an arm—but his second shot had still been wasted.

Kiba managed to roll backward just in time to avoid losing his manhood to the end of the sharp sword that protruded from the ground where he had been moments ago. "That was way too close." He looked to his fighting companion. "Let's go, Akamaru!" The small white dog, whose size had nearly increased by one half in the last six months, jumped onto his friend's back. "Juujuin Bunshin!" Kiba called out. Both he and Akamaru were transformed into the more beastly version of himself. "Gatsuuga!" He and Akamaru spun at lighting speed, diving at the puppet again and again.

A Suna genin saw Kiba and she ran towards him to help. Boar, rat, snake. "Kuikkusando no jutsu!" The sand under the puppet became quicksand and it sank in just enough to give Kiba and Akamaru time to strike together. The puppet shattered from the impact.

Kiba dispelled his jutsu. "Nice trick. Thanks," he said with a smile.

The chuunin grinned. "No problem!" Suddenly, she heard a rumbling sound behind her. One of the puppets burst out of the sand and stabbed her through the chest from behind. She looked at the blood covered blade in horror. "No...I haven't even made...chuunin. I c-can't die...y...y..." She slumped forward and all life left her body.

Kiba watched in horror as the puppet removed its blade and dropped the mid-teenaged girl's corpse to the ground. "You bastard!" he yelled angrily, prepared to attack.

Just at that moment, Kakashi's Raikiri split the offending puppet in two. He looked down at the dead girl and sighed. "I'm sorry I was too late."

"She helped me take one of them down," Kiba said sadly.

Kakashi clapped a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Let's make sure her death wasn't in vain then."

Kiba nodded. "Hnm!" He and Kakashi took off in different directions.

An explosion rocked the battlefield and Sakura looked at the carnage in confusion. "How did this happen?" She immediately began looking for survivors to heal.

 

* * *

Gaara stared with gritted teeth at the spot where Deidara's bomb had hit. He'd been dodging a barrage that had been sent his way when Deidara took the opportunity to throw a bomb down on a group of eight Suna nins who had regrouped in the same spot. As a precautionary measure, Gaara erected a sand barrier between them and the group fighting below.

Deidara frowned. "You took away some of my canvas." He sighed. "No matter. They're not my target anyway—hmm." he dodged another barrage of sand and retaliated with a flock of seven small birds.

Gaara blocked the birds and used his gourd sand to chase Deidara again. He managed to close the sand around the other man's arm. "Sabaku Kyuu!" The sand tightened its grip. "Sabaku SouSou!" The sand crushed Deidara's arm—ripping it off as he tried to get away.

"AHHHGH!" Deidara screamed. After a moment he regained his composure as he used a small fire bomb to cauterize the wound. "Looks like I have to use 'that'—hmm." From the folds of his cloak, he produced a much larger version of the bombs he'd been using earlier. "This is my special—C3! Your village will be the ultimate canvas—hmm." He let the bomb slip from his hand. It rocketed toward the village, increasing in size on the way down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Deidara screaming is OOC, but I honestly think his reaction to having his arm ripped off was a bit too calm in the manga. I mean, the guy didn't even flinch.


	7. To Save My Friend

The sound of the explosion when the bomb hit was deafening. But as the smoke cleared it became evident that it had failed to hit its target. Gaara had extended the sand shield that he had put over the battle earlier in order to encompass the village as well. He frowned when he noticed his opponent was still smiling. He caught the tiniest glimpse of a bird bomb in his peripheral vision and barely had time to put up a shield made of his gourd sand to guard against it.  _"That was close."_

The people on the ground looked up at the massive sand ceiling in awe. Standing in front of the Ramen Barn, Kurumi smiled with pride. "Gaara-sama..."

Back in the sky, Deidara smirked.

Gaara, who was now encased in his protective sand shell, was breathing heavily; Concentrating on so many things at once was difficult. He heard an odd scratching sound to his right and turned his head. Several clay spiders were crawling out of his guard sand. "Shit!"

Deidara's smile widened. He whispered under his breath as he brought his hand up in a seal. "Bang..." The spiders exploded-expanding the shell of sand around Gaara in several small pockets.

Kankuro noticed the sand that surrounded his little brother had begun to fall away. "GAARA!" The puppet Kankuro had been fighting took the opportunity to stab its stinger through the puppet master's leg. "GYAAAAH!" he screamed. As the enemy puppet rounded on him again a Suna jounin grabbed him and pulled him out of harm's way.

The Jounin laid Kankuro down behind a large rock, checked over the wound, and then used some of his arm wrappings as a dressing. "It's bad," he said as he tied off the bandage, "but I think you'll be alright. I'll look for that Konoha med nin."

Kankuro nodded. "Thank you, Kesshouryuu." He suddenly remembered what had distracted him. "Gaara...Help Gaara," he pleaded.

Kesshouryuu nodded. "Nhm," he confirmed before leaping away.  _"But before that, you need help."_

 

* * *

Temari was very frustrated. She couldn't use most of her more powerful attacks for fear of hitting someone on her side. She was restricted to creating small blasts of air to knock the puppets off balance so her allies had an easier time attacking them.

Kesshouryuu showed up at Temari's side. "Temari-dono! Kankuro-dono has been injured!"

Temari whipped her face around to meet him. "What?!"

"It's not life-threatening...yet. I need to find the Konoha medic. Do you know where she is?"

"No, but I'll help look!" Temari answered.

Both ninjas shot off in different directions in search of Sakura.

 

* * *

Sakura looked over the last of the Suna nins that were splayed across the landscape in various undignified positions. "Damn it! Not one that I can help!" she said angrily.

She was running back to the battle when she noticed a young chuunin's body on the ground. She had been impaled through the chest. Sakura sighed. "Poor thing." She was just about to continue on her way when she saw the girl's finger twitch and gasped. "She's still alive?!" Sakura dove to the ground and gently rolled the girl over.  _"She's lost a lot of blood, but the blade only pierced her right lung."_  She fired up her healing jutsu. "Please...let me save at least one."

 

* * *

Gaara's vision was going out of focus but he stuck out his hand anyway and began, with great effort, to pull the sand back away from his barriers. He had to make sure the sand didn't fall and hurt anyone. It was like seeing a tidal wave in reverse.

Deidara just stood on his bird's back and watched; curious to see if his opponent could pull off what he was apparently trying to do.

 

* * *

Naruto looked up just in time to see the last of the sand falling away from his friend. "Gaara..." His face hardened and he ran towards the cliff edge while putting his hands into his favorite seal. He created a clone and, then turned himself into a fuma (shadow) shuriken. The clone threw him with all its might, disappearing once its job was done. He rocketed toward his falling friend, dispelling the henge once he felt he was close enough.

 

* * *

Deidara and his bird waited patiently under his target. Gaara began to fall and Deidara sighed in relief. "Finally-hmm." Just before Gaara was about to land on the tail of the bird a blue and green streak came through and snatched away Deidara's prize. "What?!" At first, he thought the Gaara had fallen to his death but then he felt a jolt as some unseen force pulled his bird downwards a bit. He looked over the side to see what had happened and his eyes went wide with surprise. Naruto had created a large number of kage bunshins just as he had caught Gaara. One bunshin had its hands clasped tightly around the legs of the clay bird and the other bunshins had made a chain out of themselves. At the end of the chain, Naruto held onto the last bunshin and he and Gaara were using the chain to swing safely back down to the main battle zone.

Deidara glared as Naruto let go of the end of the clone chain and landed. "Oh no, you don't-hmm!" He thrust his hand into his clay bag...only to find it empty. "Tch!" He looked down at the ongoing battle. "Sasori-no-dana...gomen." He turned around and began to fly out of the village. "I'm never going to hear the end of this...hmm."

 

* * *

Sasori watched his partner fly off.  _"That idiot must've run out of clay. I_ _ **told**_ _him to bring more!"_  He looked back at the battle around him.  _"I may actually be forced to show myself at this rate. Finally, a challenge."_

The Kazekage flashed through a series of seals. "Kaze no Yaiba!" Wind blasted forward, slicing through the puppet from every conceivable direction. "I put chakra blades into that wind. You're done," he said with satisfaction.

"You are overly confident," Sasori said from under the kindling that used to be his puppet.

The Kazekage's eyes widened and he jumped back1 a bit just in case. "How?!"

Out of the puppet's remains rose what appeared to be a young man. "I told you...you're overconfident!" Sasori unrolled a scroll and touched his hand to it. "I'll show you my finest puppet. It was quite difficult, killing this one in order to add it to my collection.-But that's why he's my favorite." He touched his hand to the scroll. There was a puff of smoke and when it cleared there was a puppet standing in front of the Kazekage that made his blood run cold.

"But...that's impossible!" the Kazekage exclaimed. He heard a footstep to his left and was surprised at who it was. "Ch...Chiyo-sama!"

"So, it was you Sasori. You're the reason the Sandaime Kazekage disappeared!" Chiyo said icily.

 

* * *

Naruto laid Gaara down on the sand about sixty meters from the battle and his hand went to Gaara's wrist to check his pulse. "I think his pulse is steady, but I'm no med nin. I need to find Sakura-chan." He stood up. "Wait for just a little while. I'll be back soon!"

 

* * *

Sakura wiped the sweat off her forehead. "Come on. C'mon!" The heartbeat of the girl that Sakura had been trying to heal had become erratic. "Damn. There's no time to heal the surface wounds and her lung. What can I...?" Sakura sucked in a breath. "A seal!" She pulled a piece of paper out of the side pouch on her medkit and drew a seal on it. She held her hand over the seal and it began to glow as she infused it with chakra. When she lifted her hand the seal moved with it and she put her hand over the girl's chest. Finding her target wouldn't be a problem as it was obvious the damaged part of the lung would be right underneath the hole.  _"Slowly, sloooowly."_  Sweat beaded on her face as she placed the seal on the lung. Once it made contact it sizzled and duplicated itself on the other side of the organ, effectively creating a patch of sorts. She breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, now for the surface."

"Sakura-san!" Kesshouryuu yelled as he ran toward. All he got from her was a loud 'SHH!'.

Sakura had the girl on her side so that she could work on both the entry and exit wounds at the same.

Naruto came running up to them but stayed silent. He knew better than to interrupt Sakura when she was working.

Finally, Sakura sighed. "She's to the point where conventional medicine can help her." She looked up at Kesshouryuu. "Can you take her to the hospital?"

Kesshouryuu nodded. "Yes, but I need you to help Kankuro-dono. He has a large wound through his leg."

"Wait," Naruto interrupted, "Gaara's hurt too, and he's unconscious."

"Okay, I'll take care of Gaara first. Hurry with her and show me where Kankuro is when you get back," Sakura instructed.

"Hai." Kesshouryuu cradled the young chuunin carefully in his arms and ran off towards the village.

 

* * *

Tsunade sighed as she stood at the door to Haruka's room. She felt silly doing this, but Naruto had been very insistent and she didn't want to disappoint him. She opened the door and walked toward the bed. "Hi. I'm Naruto's mom. He uh...asked me to visit you while he was away," she said as she put the flower she held into the vase by the bed. She sighed and smiled. "You must have been very special, for Naruto to love you as much as he does. I hope you wake up one day...for his sake."

As her hand closed around the doorknob, Tsunade suddenly felt a fluctuation in Haruka's chakra and turned right around. She pulled a small penlight from her pants pocket and checked Haruka's pupil dilation. Tsunade's breath hitched in her throat. "My god...she's responsive."

 

* * *

Sakura finished her work and sat down on the warm sand. "I've healed all the damage, but I think he'll be out for a few more hours." She saw Kesshouryuu running toward her and Naruto. "Good timing. I just finished." She got to her feet. "Lead the way."

"I'll be back later, Gaara. Right now I got some butt to kick," Naruto said with a feral grin and then ran back to the battle.

 

* * *

As Hinata dodged she began to wonder why she had come at all. She was useless unless she could get in close and all kaiten did was knock the puppets back.  _"I need to do something!"_  she thought in frustration. Suddenly her eyes widened with memory.  _"My new jutsu!"_  But her enthusiasm quickly faded.  _"But what if it's not ready?"_  An image of Naruto and his golden smile flashed through her mind. (("Ganbatte, Hinata-chan.")) Her resolve instantly returned. She moved into a stance where she stood straight, eyes closed, with one arm down at her side and her left hand in a seal up in front of her face. "Tsuin tenrai uchimono!"

As chakra streamed from her fingertips her hands began to move in sharp, swift cutting motions. The puppet charged but it didn't have a chance. Hinata's chakra blades had nearly ten-foot range before dissipating. The puppet's wooden body was in several large pieces in less than thirty seconds. Though panting for breath, Hinata looked at the result of her training with a rare smile of pride.  _"I did it, Naruto-kun."_

 

* * *

The Kazekage looked at Chiyo with wide eyes. "Y...you mean that puppet is..." he trailed off, unable to finish his sentence because of the horror that the end of it implied.

Chiyo's glared deepened. "Yes, he's turned Sandaime-sama...into a puppet."


	8. Sugikon

Chiyo clenched her teeth as she frantically searched through her mind for any solution to the current situation that wouldn't involve her death. _"Just Sasori was bad enough, but if I'm right about what kind of puppet that is then we are in deep trouble."_ She turned to the Kazekage. "Takaifuujin, I'm going to need help."

Takaifuujin nodded. "Nhm!"

Kesshouryuu walked up next to Takaifuujin. "We're with you too, Kazekage-sama."

Takaifuujin took a quick look around and noticed that all the previous puppets had been destroyed. He also noticed that eight of his original team were still standing and so were most of the Konoha nins. He smiled. "Thank you, Kesshouryuu, but considering the poison he uses I think you all should stay back. Only enter the fight if Chiyo-sama and I have failed."

Kesshouryuu didn't look happy about it but did as he was commanded to. "Hai, Kazekage-sama."

Naruto returned to the fight to find the Kazekage and an elderly woman he'd never seen before standing in front of the enemy-surrounded by their allies.  _"Why the hell aren't they attacking?"_  he wondered as he ran to Hinata's side. "Hina-chan, what's going on?"

"Kazekage-sama told everyone to act only as back up," Hinata said with a tone that clearly said she wanted to help.

Naruto let out a puff of air. "Well, then that's what we gotta do," he said darkly.

Hinata looked at him with surprise. The boy she loved wasn't known for being so mature in this kind of situation. "Nhm," she said with a bit of pride.

Dog, dragon, horse. "Suna goremu no jutsu! (A/N-Sand golem technique)" A humanoid sand creature emerged behind Takaifuujin.

Sasori smirked. "Hmf. What are you going to do with that? You should know that's too slow to get anywhere near me."

Sasori's Sandaime puppet shot forward, its right arm opening up into a nasty array of bladed weapons. Just a foot or so before these blades made contact something rushed in front of them, blocking them from their intended target. Now it was Takaifuujin's turn to smirk. "Heh."

Sasori glared at the golem as it held back his puppet's blades. "That's impossible!"

"By itself, a golem is slow, but with a puppeteer controlling it..." Takaifuujin turned to look at Chiyo. Chakra strings, emanating from her fingertips, were attached to the golem.

"Like that'll make a difference!" Sasori yelled. The puppet's left arm flipped open and several kunai shot out at once. The golem blocked every one of them, but just barely. "Heh. You're getting slow in your old age grandma!"

"Don't get cocky, Kiddo! I taught you everything you know!" Chiyo countered as she used the golem to knock back the puppet.

Suddenly Takaifuujin began to feel woozy. "What the...?" he said weakly as he put a hand on his forehead.

"So, it's finally taken effect," Sasori said with satisfaction.

"I'm...poisoned? But," Takaifuujin stumbled a bit as his golem dispersed back into the sand it came from, "how? I never got cut."

"Did you think all my puppets were easily seen?" Sasori smiled. "Lift up your right sleeve."

Takaifuujin moved his sleeve and there, on his arm, was a tiny scorpion puppet. "Shit!" He fell down in a sitting position on the sand. "I'm sorry, Chiyo-sama...but it looks like I'm out of this fight." He fell over onto his side and slipped into unconsciousness.

Chiyo pulled two scrolls out of her sleeves and unrolled them. Two popping noises sounded and when the smoke cleared, two puppets appeared in front of the aging puppet master. One was female and the other was male. "I didn't think Takai-kun would have been taken out so easily. I really didn't want to have to use these two."

Sasori cocked an eyebrow. "Are you kidding me? Those were the first two puppets I ever made." Memories of those very same puppets holding him in comfort when he was little flooded his mind. "Hmpf. Mother...and father. How stupid of you. I know all their tricks!"

Both Sasori's and Chiyo's puppets shot towards each other. After several punches, kicks, and swipes with blades, they jumped back to their masters-each sporting massive damage. Sasori looked at his puppet. It was missing a chunk out of its left arm and some of its right side had been splintered. "I underestimated you, Grandma. Looks like I may need to take this seriously after all." His puppet's mouth opened and something that looked a bit like black sand began to snake from it in tendrils.

"So, it seems it can use the Sandaime's jutsu." Chiyo gritted her teeth.  _"The most feared weapon in all of Sunagakuru...satetsu (A/N- Iron sand)"_

"It's been a long time since you've seen this, hasn't it? This 'family reunion' is about to be cut short!" The tendrils surrounded Chiyo's puppets and separated into the tiny granules that they really were. They filled every joint of the puppets, rendering them useless.

The satetsu formed into needle-like projectiles and rocketed toward Chiyo. She raised her right arm. The sides of it opened into four long strips which had chakra run between them, creating a shield. "So, you've turned your arm into a puppet. How fitting. And a chakra shield as well. You're just full of surprises today, Grandma."

Chiyo closed her arm back up and stood still for a moment...thinking.  _"Damn. I really don't want to use 'those'."_ Just as Chiyo was about to pull out another scroll a strange looking humanoid figure stepped up next to her. It was like a living shadow. "What is this?"

The shadow figure spoke. "I'm a jutsu made by Haruno Sakura. I can't be destroyed unless Sakura is knocked out and that strange sand won't affect me. Please, use me as your puppet."

Chiyo stared at this thing that spoke with no mouth for a moment and then looked around till she saw a girl with roughly the same shape as the shadow humanoid. The girl with pink hair gave her a thumbs up and a grin. "Hmn. Thank you, child." She turned back to her grandson. "Alright, kid. Let's see what this shadow can do."

"Golem or shadow puppet-it makes little difference!" Sasori goaded as he sent another rain of satetsu needles.

Chiyo used Inner Sakura to pull herself out of the way of the onslaught. After they landed Inner Sakura spoke again. "What is that attack?"

"Satetsu. It's a jutsu developed by the Sandaime, based on an attack by the previous host of Shukaku. It can be formed into any shape, such as weapons that are perfect for any situation. The Sandaime had a kekkai genkai allowed him to turn the chakra he formed into magnetic forces," Chiyo explained.

"But why would a lifeless puppet have chakra?" Inner Sakura asked.

"Because...that's no ordinary puppet. That's a hitokugutsu-a puppet made from the body of a living person. It's made so that the puppet retains the chakra the victim had while they were still alive."

"Th...that's horrible!" said Inner Sakura.

"Only Sasori can make them. And it also allows him to use all the victim's jutsus." Chiyo turned to Inner Sakura. "It's a good thing you're not made of flesh or I would make you get back."

"Enough talk! Satetsu Kaihou!" Starting at the puppet's mouth, a web of spikes forward. They kept branching off of each other until a huge, spiky mass of brambles headed toward Chiyo.

Inner Sakura pointed at the center of the attack. "Throw me!" Chiyo did as was instructed. Inner Sakura poured chakra into her fist and rocketed through the brambles, shattering them into thousands of tiny splinters.

Hinata's eyes went wide. "Su...Sugoi!"

Sasori glared at Inner Sakura.  _"That thing is impossible to destroy, but it can't have come from nowhere."_ He looked around until his eyes settled on Sakura. It didn't take more than a second for his brain to put two and two together after realizing their outlines were identical.  _"So...that's where you are."_

Naruto noticed Sasori's eyes flicker in Sakura's direction for a moment and he didn't like what it implied.

Sasori's puppet headed for Sakura with frightening speed.  _"Shit,"_  Inner Sakura thought,  _"I don't have time to get back to myself!"_

Sakura's eyes widened when she saw the puppet coming for her.

"No!" Chiyo yelled.

Everyone barely saw the golfball-sized, snow-white ball before it hit the puppet and exploded, causing everyone to cover their ears to block out the noise. When the dust cleared the puppet lay on the ground...in several hundred pieces.

Sasori had managed to catch the trajectory of the sphere and looked in that direction. He saw Naruto standing there...with eyes he'd never seen.  _"What the hell? He didn't have a dojutsu in the reports."_  He glared in thought for a moment.  _"It must be a side effect of the niji chakra."_

The white flame in Naruto's eyes seemed to glow a bit as he reached out into the air and, with the speed of building a rasengan, pulled material seemingly from thin air and made another ball identical to the first. Sasori's eyes widened as much as possible when he realized what Naruto had just done. "You...you can see sugikon?! (A/N-after soul, aka chakra residue)"

Naruto grinned. "Yep. And that's not all." He held out the hand which contained the sugikon bomb and formed a niji rasengan around it. "Everyone, run! I'm the only one of us who could live through this!" he commanded to the crowd. Hinata, Sakura and Sasuke looked at Naruto. He saw their fear and smiled. "Don't worry-seriously. I've done this before."

Hinata was surprised. "Y...you have?"

Naruto laughed. "What did you think I was doing with Jiraiya for six months?-Watching him peep?"

Sasuke smirked. "Hmpf, just be careful."

"You know me," Naruto replied.

Sasuke cocked an eyebrow. "That's why I said be careful."

The remainder of his allies departed, with Hinata casting a nervous glance behind her as Naruto turned to face his enemy.

Sasori simply shook his head. "How do you think you're gonna hit me with that, kid? There's no way," Sasori took off his cloak, "you can match my speed."

Naruto was shocked as he looked over the many wooden limbs and joints where there should have been skin.  _"He...he made himself into a puppet?"_  He smirked. "Now that I know you're mainly wood, I don't feel so bad about doing this."

Sasori looked disgusted. "Feh. 'feel  _bad_ '-about killing an enemy? What kind of ninja are you?"

Naruto's smirk widened. "The good kind." He crouched down, loaded his legs with chakra and launched himself at Sasori.

 _"He's fast,"_  Sasori thought as Naruto shot forward. He pulled a length of spear-tipped cord from the spindle he'd built into his midriff and launched it at Naruto. It was dead on target and Naruto was still heading forward. "Heh. Got you."

Just before the blade would have hit Naruto he moved the rasengan in front of himself like a shield and the projectile merely bounced off it.

"What?!" Sasori's hands flipped upwards, revealing kunai launchers in his wrists.

Naruto saw this and only smiled. "Too late..." The rasengan hit dead on target. The explosion that resulted was so powerful that it shook the village with the force of a 3.0 earthquake. Citizens had to run for cover as baseball-sized chunks of rock fell from the cliff above.

 

* * *

Hinata had been told he would be alright, but she couldn't help herself as her instincts took over. "NARUTO-KUN!" she screamed. Before her comrades could catch her she darted away from the relative safety of the Kazekage tower roof toward the settling dust from Naruto's attack.

 

* * *

Pieces of Sasori's body were scattered everywhere on the hot sand. In the center of this mayhem was a softly moaning Naruto. "Aw, dammit," he choked out as he felt Hinata's chakra signature get closer to him. He hadn't wanted her to see him until he'd healed the worst of his wounds. He winced at the pitch hit by her shriek of fear.

"Naruto-kun!" She dove to her knees next to her boyfriend. Her eyes filled with tears as she looked him over. He had multiple second-degree burns and small cuts-the exception being a large gash on his left cheek. There was blood leaking from both corners of his mouth and he was bruised everywhere. Hinata took out a cloth from her side pouch and wiped away some of the blood.

"I told you not to come," Naruto said hoarsely.

"You said you would be alright," Hinata said, a touch of anger entering her voice.

"I will be. You just got here before I was done healing myself," Naruto replied gently.

"What?" Hinata said in surprise.

Naruto smiled slightly. "Look at my cheek."

Hinata looked and saw a faint glow as the tissues slowly knitted themselves back together. She swallowed. "H..how long before we can move you?"

"About ten minutes. The burns are almost gone already," Naruto replied as he looked at his hand.

Hinata's eyes widened a little. The second-degree burns had gone down a level to first degree.

Sakura walked over and knelt beside Hinata, placing a hand on the smaller girl's shoulder. "Why don't we help him along?" she said with a smile.

Hinata nodded. "Nhm," she replied stiffly. She saw the confused look on Sakura's face produced by the strange tone in her voice but avoided clearing up the confusion because even she didn't understand why her own voice sounded so...irritated. It wasn't like her. Glowing green hands were soon speeding the healing process further, but an unfamiliar feeling was boiling underneath her own skin, something that was quickly turning into anger.  
"Thanks," Naruto said. Sakura smacked the back of his head. "What was that for?" he asked indignantly.

"For making us worry," Sakura answered without looking up from her work.

Naruto frowned.

Sakura turned to Sasuke. "Please get a med team up here with a stretcher."

Sasuke nodded and left.

Once the wounds were healed enough that the girls could lessen the help they gave Hinata uttered words that Naruto had never thought could come from her mouth. "Naruto-kun?" she said without looking at him.

"Yeah?"

The tone in her voice held barely contained rage. "Don't you _ever_  do that again."

Naruto shrank back a bit at the quiet anger in her words. "I did what I had to..."

Hinata's head snapped up. Tears were streaming down her face. "EVER!" she screeched.

"Hina-chan, we're ninjas. We're going to get hurt," Naruto replied, feeling a bit defensive as he eased himself into a sitting position.

"That's not what I was talking about."

"Then what...?"

Hinata had calmed down considerably, but the tears still flowed. "You lied to me to get me to leave. You said you would be alright. The way you looked when we first got here-that...that wasn't alright," she finished softly.

Naruto hated to admit it, but she was right. He wrapped his arms around her. "I'm sorry, Hina-chan. Next time we fight together...I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know some of you will think Hinata is OOC, but with how much she's grown during COLAD and considering the circumstances I think her reaction was correct.


	9. The Best of Intentions

Chiyo stared down at a circular piece of wood that was cracked in half...with blood oozing out of it. There was also what looked like chunks of tissue inside. "So...that's where you kept your organic parts," she said sadly. "I am sorry, my grandson—it is because of my poor guidance that you came to this end."

Sakura put a hand on Chiyo's shoulder. "Come on. You're the last one," she said with a small smile.

"Yes..." Chiyo gave one last look at her grandson's remains. "I suppose I should be evaluated. Sakura, was it?"

"Hai," Sakura replied with a slight nod.

"Thank you for the use of your...shadow puppet. That's quite the kekkai genkai you have there," Chiyo said as they began walking.

Sakura brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face. "Thank you. I just learned about it last year."

"Your blond friend—What clan is he from? Is he a Namikaze?"

Sakura blinked rapidly. "Yeah. How did you know?"

"I saw Minato fight in the great wars," Chiyo said as she looked at the sky wistfully, "He was unlike any shinobi I've ever seen. The instant I saw Naruto I knew they had to be related."

Sakura laughed. "Naruto's his son."

Chiyo raised an eyebrow. "That certainly explains his talent."

Sakura laughed again.

Chiyo gave her a curious look. "What's so funny?"

"I've never heard anyone call him talented before," Sakura replied, her laughter slowing to a light giggle.

Chiyo looked at her in shock. "What passes for true talent in your village, if not a boy who can nearly bring down a cliff with one shot?" They reached the village level and landed on the street.

"Naruto started out as the worst of our class," Sakura replied as they turned a corner.

"The worst—how is that possible?"

"I'm not really sure. When we graduated he could barely make a proper bunshin. When we took our final test with Kakashi-sensei he surprised us all with  _kage_  bunshin. During our first mission, we encountered an unexpected enemy who was tough, even for Kakashi-sensei. He got trapped in some kind of water prison jutsu and we all thought we were dead. But Naruto went from quivering on the ground to suddenly saying he was going to be Hokage and coming up with a plan that freed Kakashi-sensei."

"Interesting," Chiyo commented as she rubbed a sore spot on her right arm.

"And when we were in the forest for the chuunin exam, he acted dumb sometimes and others he just blew me away by coming up with amazingly well thought out plans."

"And you don't consider that talented?" Chiyo asked as the hospital came into view.

Sakura frowned in thought. "It's not consistent. Kind of like he's got an idiot and a battle master trapped in the same body and they take turns being in control."

Chiyo made a small chuckle. "Did he have good teachers as a child?"

Sakura considered this for a moment. "Well, he had Iruka sensei, but if you mean someone to help him at home, then, no."

"Hmm. That makes me wonder what kind of ninja he might have been if someone had taken the time to train him properly outside of school."

"You know...I never thought of that before," Sakura answered with a bit of shame to her tone.

"If he's gone from worst in your class, to doing that jutsu I saw a little while ago in less than three years..."

"Some of that is from the niji chakra though," Sakura countered.

Chiyo frowned. "Talent is not measured in raw power, Sakura. How many ninjas do you know who would think of putting sugikon inside a rasengan? As far as battles and techniques go, I would call that talent. I would even go so far as to call it genius."

Sakura looked at Chiyo with an incredulous expression. "Genius...Naruto? Are you serious?"

"Quite." Chiyo pointed in front of them. "Although it looks like we won't have time to discuss it further."

Sakura looked ahead and saw a Suna chuunin running towards them.

"Sakura-san, Chiyo-sama...we require your assistance inside!" the chuunin said quickly.

"Looks like my exam will have to wait," Chiyo said, and both of them ran into the hospital.

 

* * *

A doctor met Chiyo and Sakura as soon as they entered the room—which was buzzing with activity. "She's fibrillating. I can't get it to stop."

Sakura instantly recognized the young chuunin on the table as the one she had helped in the field.

Chiyo waved the nurses out of their way and Sakura put her hands on the girl's chest.  _"Oh no!"_  Sakura looked at the doctor in regret. "I should have known I hadn't learned enough to heal something this bad. The seals I put in place have failed. There's nothing I can do," she said sadly.

Chiyo put a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "There's something...I can do." She laid her hands on the dying girl.  _"Sasori...maybe by doing this, heaven will forgive me for not guiding you in the way I should have."_  Her hands glowed and the light spread over the girl's body. After a moment it lessened, then disappeared altogether...and Chiyo fell to the floor.

Sakura was instantly at the old woman's side. "Chiyo-san!" She noticed Chiyo wasn't breathing and checked her pulse. A looked of total bewilderment came over her face. "She...she's gone. I don't understand it."

"I do," said the doctor as she sat down in a chair. "What she used wasn't medical jutsu—it was a resurrection jutsu. Look," she said as she pointed at the girl.

Sakura's eyes widened. The chuunin girl was breathing slow and steady. "Chiyo gave her, her life energy," she said softly.

The doctor nodded solemnly. "I've never seen it done before, but my mother told me about it."

Sakura got to her feet and checked the chuunin's vitals. "It looks like she's made a full recovery. Why don't you show me the others?"

The doctor nodded and led the way.

 

* * *

Sakura finished healing Kankuro's leg and sighed heavily. "There's nothing else I can do until we come up with an antidote for that poison." She gritted her teeth.  _"Dammit. All my training and this is as much as I can do?"_  She sighed again. "I think I may need help. Please contact Tsunade-sama," she said to the doctor.

 

* * *

The instant Sakura saw Naruto; she wished she had waited just a few more minutes before entering the room. Naruto was sitting on the bed in nothing but his boxers. She had seen him in this state several times since they had become teammates, but those times had all been before he had left with Jiraiya and come back with muscles that were very, _very_... She shook her head to rid her mind of the biological reaction to the boy in front of her. She knew it didn't mean she was any less loyal to Lee and that it was a natural reaction to an attractive member of the opposite sex, but she still couldn't help but feel guilty. She put her hand in front of her face. "Naruto-kun...put something on please?"

Naruto blushed a bit in embarrassment. "Sorry. The nurse should be back with my clothes in a minute." He pulled up the sheets around himself. "You can look now."

Sakura sighed in relief and turned around—noting how stark the Suna hospital rooms were compared to the ones back home. The bed was against the middle of the wall to the right. There was a nightstand but it was white stone with no flowers or patterns. The window was small, with no blinds or shutters. Pretty much everything was white or grayish. The whole thing made her feel bad for anyone who had to stay in one of these rooms for very long. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine. A little sore, but I'll live," Naruto replied as he rotated his neck to stretch it out.

"I'm waiting for Tsunade-sama. I can't heal the poison by myself yet," Sakura said with a frown as she sat on the chair beside the bed.

Naruto smiled comfortingly. "I'm sure you will someday."

"Thanks," Sakura replied.

Naruto looked out the tiny window, or at least he tried to—it was too small to see much. "I never knew Hinata could get so mad," he said with a half-hearted laugh.

"Well, people get mad when the person they love does something like that," Sakura explained matter-of-factly. "I'm sure you weren't too happy when Hinata told you she almost use that technique to save you when you got burned." she instantly knew she had said something she wasn't supposed to when she saw the look on Naruto's face.

Naruto's eyes were squinted into an apprehensive glare. "What do you mean?" he asked slowly.

Sakura couldn't think of anything to say. She hadn't thought that Hinata wouldn't have told Naruto about what happened in Ganshou. "I-uh...u...um."

Naruto felt a knot forming in his stomach. "What technique, Sakura-chan?" he demanded.

"I...um...ah...um...this isn't something I should tell you. It should be Hinata that does it," Sakura said as she lowered her eyes.

"I...I will," came Hinata's voice from the doorway.

Naruto's head snapped sideways. "What's she talking about, Hina-chan?" he demanded, his voice laced with concern.

Sakura stood up. "I think I should go." She turned to Naruto. "I'll check on you later." She might as well have said it to thin air seeing as how he didn't even turn his head to acknowledge her. She gave Hinata's shoulder a comforting squeeze before exiting the room.

When the door clicked shut Hinata sat down on the bed while Naruto watched her expectantly. After a moment of silence, Naruto couldn't take it anymore. "Well?"

Hinata let out a long sigh. "D...do you remember that technique I used to bring that fish back to life...?"

Naruto's eyes snapped open.

_(("Hinata, I want you to promise me that you'll never do that again," Tsunade said sternly._

_The smile fell from Hinata's face. "Huh?" she said in confusion. Hadn't she done a good job? "Why?"_

" _The body has a lot less electrical current than chakra. Reviving a fish is one thing. If you use that technique on a human being...you'll die," Tsunade said gravely. Hinata made a small gasp. "I am declaring that jutsu as forbidden. You can't use it and you will not teach it to anyone. Is that understood?"_

_Hinata's face showed her disappointment. "Hai...Tsunade-sama."))_

Naruto looked at his girlfriend in absolute horror. "If you'd used that...you...you would've..."

Hinata swallowed. "I...I didn't want you to die."

Naruto squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. When he opened them they held a mixture of anger and sadness. "My life...is never worth yours...you got that?" he said in a shaking voice.

"N...Naruto-kun, I..."

"NEVER!" Naruto yelled.

Hinata's eyes filled with tears. "I didn't want you to die!" she cried shrilly.

"You think I want  _you_  to die either?!" Naruto yelled back. "I can't believe you'd do something so  _stupid_!"

Hinata stood so quickly that the chair she'd been occupying fell over. As she ran out the door she bumped into a nurse carrying Naruto's clothes—muttering an 'excuse me' as she disappeared from sight.

The nurse stared at the sullen boy in pity for a moment before speaking. "I'll um...I'll just leave these here," she said quietly as she placed the clothes on the nightstand.

Once the nurse was gone from the room Naruto's face fell into his hands and he exhaled a long, frustrated sigh. "Dammit."

 

* * *

Three days later Tsunade was busy drawing the last of the poison from her final patient. She wiped the sweat from her forehead. "I think that's all I can remove with this method." She turned to Sakura. "Let's go make the antidote so we can get these people out of here," she said with a smile.

Sakura responded in kind and nodded. "Nhm!"

They left the intensive care unit and walked down the long hallway. "I'm sorry, shishou. I failed you," Sakura said suddenly.

"How did you fail?" Tsunade asked in curiosity.

"I couldn't draw out the poison like you showed me."

Tsunade smiled. "Sakura, you've studied under me for less than a year. You're being too hard on yourself."

Sakura sighed. "I guess."

As they got near Naruto's room Tsunade stopped. "I'm going to see how my son's doing. Why don't you get started and I'll meet you at the greenhouse."

Sakura nodded and walked away.

Tsunade saw that Naruto was staring at the bed sheets with a listless expression and frowned a bit as she walked into the room. "Hey there, kiddo," she said as she sat down on the chair next to him.

Silence.

"What's wrong?" Tsunade asked as she bent her head down so she could attempt making eye contact.

Naruto didn't look up. "I yelled at Hinata," he said quietly.

Tsunade blinked in surprise. "Yelled at her? Why?"

Naruto sighed and raised his head. "Do you remember that jutsu you told Hina-chan was forbidden?"

Tsunade nodded.

"Well, I found out that she almost used it to save me when I got burned."

Tsunade's face set into a frown. "I see," she said in a disapproving tone.

"I got mad when I found out. I told her she was stupid," Naruto said regretfully.

"Hmm. While I agree with your assessment, you probably didn't phrase it in the best way. When did this happen?"

"Three days ago."

"Three days?! You can't leave something like this for so long," Tsunade chastised.

Naruto sighed. "I wanna to talk to her, but I wouldn't know what to say. I don't know how to face her after calling her that."

Tsunade chewed her inner cheek a bit in thought. "My mother always told me 'Never go to bed angry'."

Naruto looked confused. "Huh?"

"When you're in a relationship that is really important to you, you should always try to resolve things before you go to sleep. The longer you leave things alone, the harder it is to make up."

Naruto was silent for a moment before nodding his head. "Okay, as soon as they let me out of here."

A sudden look of confusion came over Tsunade's face. "Why  _are_  you still in here anyway?"

Naruto frowned. "They won't tell me."

Tsunade cocked an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

 

* * *

The door to the chief resident's office opened and Tsunade strolled in. The owner of said office looked up in surprise. "May I help you?"

Tsunade folded her arms and glared at the balding man. "Yes. You can tell me why my son is still in here when he should've been released on the first day."

"Who's your son?" the chief asked tentatively.

"Uzumaki Naruto," Tsunade answered impatiently.

The chief instantly looked nervous. He hadn't expected the boy's mother to visit. "I...see. Please have a seat."

When the chief didn't start talking immediately Tsunade got impatient. "Well?"

The chief clear his throat. "I didn't want to share this information with anyone until I was sure." He stood up, opened a file cabinet drawer, pulled out a manila folder and retook his seat. "It would seem…that Naruto may be suicidal."

"What?" Tsunade said with an incredulous tone.

"My family has a kekkai genkai. Even if there are no scars, wounds change the cells from their original state. We can see even the oldest of wounds as green lines on the skin. I was looking over his injuries from the battle and...there were over forty cuts in the area between the elbow and the wrist on his left arm. It doesn't look like the kind of wounds made by battle. They are precise and consistently..."

"Stop," Tsunade said suddenly. She closed her eyes, shook her head and sighed. "Thank you for your concern, but they aren't suicide wounds."

The chief looked skeptical and slightly insulted. Who was this woman to question his analysis? "With all due respect, ma'am, I would think I know more about medicine than you."

Tsunade laughed slightly. "Do you even know who I am?"

"No," the chief answered with trepidation.

"I am Tsunade—Hokage of Konoha."

The chief went white as a sheet. "Ts...Tsunade-sama. Forgive me. Of course, you would know what you are talking about." Tsunade smirked. "But would you mind telling me exactly what  _is_  going on then?"

Tsunade made an unhappy sigh. "Practice."

The look on the chief's face was one of utter confusion. "Practice?"

"My son has a healing ability. About seven months ago he showed it to me by making a large cut in the area you talked about."

"I understand. I'll get his release papers then," the chief said with a relieved smile.

The two stood and shook hands. "Thank you, for having such concern over my son," Tsunade said graciously.

The chief nodded and smiled again. "Of course."

 

* * *

"How do you know about that?" Naruto asked his mother in disbelief.

Tsunade folded her arms. "I have my sources. The chief resident thought you were suicidal. That's why he was keeping you here."

"Sorry. I shoulda told you earlier," Naruto said as he pulled on his t-shirt.

Tsunade pursed her lips. "That would've been nice."

Naruto grimaced apologetically. "I didn't want you to worry. Plus, most of it was while I was away."

"Just promise me that from now on you'll tell me about any training that you purposely hurt yourself for," Tsunade asked as she gave him a hug.

"I will, Kaa-san."

They parted and stood up. "Well, now that that's settled, I have to join Sakura in the greenhouse. Why don't you go find Hinata?"

Naruto nodded. "Hai."

 

* * *

Hinata was sitting at the ice cream shop. She slowly ate her treat, heeding Sakura's warning about headaches. She wasn't sure how to apologize to Naruto. He'd been so angry. She had told Sakura about the argument and she had said that it was best to let Naruto cool down. Hinata sighed when she noticed she had carved Naruto's name in the frozen confection.  _"Naruto-kun..."_

"Hey, Hina-chan," came Naruto's voice from behind the young Hyuuga.

Hinata blinked and turned around. "Naruto-kun!" she exclaimed in surprise.

Naruto made a small smile. "Can you come with me for a minute?"

Hinata slowly nodded and the couple left the shop.

"Naruto-kun, I..." Hinata began.

Naruto put a hand on Hinata's shoulder. "Wait...I don't wanna talk about this out here."

Hinata nodded and followed in silence.

They made their way to the building the Konoha team had been staying at while in Suna. It was a fairly long, four-story building with the usual, dull Suna architecture. Once inside they went up to the room that the guys all shared.

Naruto sat on the couch and Hinata followed suit. "I wanted to apologize," he said after a moment.

"Wh...what do you have to apologize for?" Hinata asked in confusion.

Naruto shook his head. "I'm the  _only_  one who needs to apologize. Yeah, what you almost did wasn't the brightest idea in the world, but I probably would've done the same thing if it was you. I shouldn't have called you stupid. I was just...scared. To think you might've sacrificed yourself for me...it makes my chest hurt." His eyes were filled with fear and sadness as he stroked her forehead. "Please, don't ever die for me. If you think you can live and still save me I'm all for it. But..." his eyes misted over, "I don't want to live if you're not there too."

Hinata wiped at the tears that were now making their way down her face and nodded before pulling the boy she loved into a tight embrace. "I promise."


	10. Consequences

"Hey, Gaara!"

Gaara looked up from his book to see Naruto just waltz right into his hospital room without knocking. He sighed inwardly but managed a courteous, "Ohayo."

Naruto sat down on the end of the bed, a wolfish expression on his face. "So...Kurumi been to visit you yet?" he teased.

Gaara rolled his eyes slightly. "Three times." He looked at the clock on his nightstand. "In fact, she should be..." He was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Gaara-sama, can I come in?" chirped Kurumi's cheerful voice.

Gaara sighed. "Hai."

Kurumi walked in, holding a book. "I found it." She set down a tiny vase with a single rose in it. "Took me a couple hours but..." it was then she noticed Naruto. "Hey, Naruto-kun," she said happily. "Sorry I didn't see you there," she said as a nurse walked in and set Gaara's clothes down on a chair next to the bed.

Naruto blinked. "I'm sitting on the end of Gaara's bed. How could you miss me?"

The nurse giggled and whispered in Naruto's ear. "She kinda has tunnel vision when it comes to Gaara-sama."

Naruto laughed as the nurse left. He looked at the title of the book as she handed it to Gaara. It read:  **'The Duties of a Kazekage'**. He smiled. "Glad you haven't given up on that."

The side of Gaara's mouth curled upward into a small smile. "I should know these things just in case Kazekage-sama actually manages to convince the council that I would be a good candidate."

Naruto smiled. "Good plan. Glad to see you're okay."

"Thanks to you," Gaara said with a grateful nod.

"I always take care of my friends," Naruto replied with a thumbs-up.

Gaara gave his friend a genuine smile.

"Neh, Gaara-sama?" Kurumi asked while gaining some pink in her cheeks.

Gaara cocked his head to one side in curiosity as a gentle breeze wafted through the room from the window. "Hm?"

Kurumi swallowed. "After you're released later today...would you like to get ice cream with me?" she asked in a small voice.

Gaara looked startled for a split second then regained his composure. He was about to say 'no' but something about the look in her eyes crumpled his resolve. "Alright."

Kurumi's green eyes lit up instantly. "Really?!"

Gaara nodded.

Kurumi jumped into the air. "YATTA!" Almost as soon as she landed she realized she'd been a bit overzealous. She turned a bright crimson and ahemed as she clamped her hands behind her back in an effort to look more composed.

Gaara looked tentative. Naruto was barely able to hold back his laughter.

"Um...I mean... Seven o-clock okay?" Kurumi asked, praying she hadn't scared the poor boy off.

"That is acceptable," Gaara replied politely.

Kurumi's smile returned. "Great! I'll see you then. Bye guys!" she said exuberantly. She attempted to walk out the door but walked into it instead. "Oof!" She rubbed her nose. "Eh heh heh heh," she laughed nervously. After managing to make it out the door her right sandal caught on her left and she fell into the hallway. "I'm okay!" she called out through the slowly closing door.

Naruto stared at the closed door for a moment. He snorted, then snickered, then burst into loud laughter. Gaara simply shook his head and waited for him to stop.

When Naruto finally calmed down Gaara decided it was safe to talk without too much fear of interruption. "She's...a little clumsy."

Naruto let out one last chuckle. "I gotta go," he said as he stood up. "Gotta meet with the Kazekage before we leave."

"Thank you for visiting," Gaara said truthfully.

"No prob," Naruto replied as he clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder. "A word of advice though?"

"Hm?"

"Next time you're talking to a girl that likes you try something more interesting than 'That is acceptable'," Naruto said in his best imitation of Gaara's voice.

Gaara smirked and made an affirmative sound by blowing a puff of air through his nose.

Naruto walked out the door and headed for the Kazekage tower.

 

* * *

Takaifuujin, Kazekage of Suna, was silent as he regarded the young man in front of him. He had gone through many different views of him in a rather short period of time—From instantly discounting his abilities because of his young age, to being fearful of the beast he had believed to be within him, to being in awe of his amazing chakra, and then finally to having a deep feeling of gratitude to him for destroying an enemy so dangerous to his beloved Suna. "I thank you all," he said finally. "You fought bravely for us and saved many of my comrades, both on," he looked at Kakashi, "and off," his gaze shifted to Sakura, "the battlefield." He looked at Naruto. "But you...you not only saved the boy that I plan to have succeed me one day, but you won the battle for us. Once you become Hokage—and I know you will—I will be honored to be your ally," he finished this with a low bow.

An odd silence fell over Naruto. It was not often someone regarded him with such respect, let alone a kage. So it was with a great leap forward in the growth of his personality that he too, bowed low. "Arigato, Kazekage-sama. I look forward to being your ally as well."

Not a mouth in the room, save for Naruto's and Takaifuujin's, was left closed. They stared, slack-jawed, at they blond boy they knew, or thought they had known, so well by this point.

" _It that really Naruto?" Kakashi wondered._

Hinata positively glowed with pride.  _"Naruto-kun."_

 

* * *

As they left the Kazekage tower, Kakashi clapped a hand down on Naruto's shoulder. "Naruto...I'm impressed by the way you handled yourself in there. I'm proud of you," Kakashi said as his right eye crinkled into a smile.

Naruto smiled as well—then suddenly his expression changed to that of sudden remembrance. "Oh!"

Kakashi looked at him curiously. "Hm?"

"I forgot something! Can you guys wait out here?" Naruto pleaded.

Kakashi was very curious as to what Naruto could possibly have forgotten but he gave a nod of approval anyway. Naruto smiled as his thanks and dashed back inside the building.  
  


* * *

"Kazekage-sama?"

Takaifuujin lifted his head to meet the gaze of the male jounin that had poked his head in. "Hai?"

"Uzumaki Naruto would like to speak with you again."

Takaifuujin smiled. "By all means, send him in."

Naruto appeared in the doorway and gave a short bow. "I'm sorry to bother you again. I know you gotta be busy."

"It's no bother at all." Takaifuujin waved his hand at the pillows in front of him. "Please take a seat."

Naruto sat down as instructed. "I need to ask you about one of the techniques you used against Sasori."

Takaifuujin looked intrigued. "Oh?"

"Danshingu kaze no jutsu—is it unique to Suna?" Naruto asked seriously.

Takaifuujin smiled. "Actually it is. In fact, it's not only unique to Suna but unique to me. It is my own jutsu."

A shocked expression crossed Naruto's face. For some reason, he was now very nervous about revealing the information he had.

"What is it?" Takaifuujin asked, his curiosity now piqued.

Naruto swallowed. "I...I've seen it before."

Takaifuujin looked confused for a moment but then suddenly his eyes held something that Naruto just couldn't pinpoint. Takaifuujin spoke in a strange tone of voice. "Where...Where did you see it?"

"Ganshou city. I fought...I fought a girl who used that technique," Naruto replied carefully.

Takaifuujin's eyes snapped wide. He grabbed Naruto by the shoulders, a desperately hopeful look in his eyes. "Katsura! Was her name Katsura?!"

Naruto's heart was sinking with each word of the conversation. "Yes," he answered stiffly.

The wild look left his eyes and Takaifuujin heaved a great sigh of relief. He looked up, his face shining with gratitude. "Thank you, Naruto-kun. I have been looking for Katsura for almost two years." At seeing Naruto's confused look he decided to explain. "She is my daughter."

The expression Naruto's face twisted into was one of absolute horror. The bottom had dropped out of his stomach and he suddenly desperately wished he had not gone back into the building.

Takaifuujin did not like the look on Naruto's face. "What is it?!"

Naruto's mouth opened and closed several times without making a sound. When his voice finally did find release it spoke the words that are the nightmare of every parent in existence. "She...she...she's dead."

Takaifuujin's expression became fearful and disbelieving. "Wh-wh-what?!"

"It was an accident. She was...part of a gang we were trying to stop. She was following us so we attacked. I was only trying to knock her out, so we could question her but...she...she fell onto something sharp and..." Naruto couldn't bear to finish so he simply let the rest hang in the air.

Tears pricked at the corners of Takaifuujin's eyes. "You..." His hands balled into shaking fists. "You k-killed my, my Katsura?"

Naruto squeezed his eyes shut. He wanted to run as fast as his legs could carry him to escape seeing such a look on the face of the man who had shown him such respect and admiration just a short while ago.

"Get out..." Takaifuujin said with barely contained rage.

"I...I'm sorry," Naruto said as tears slowly made their way down his face.

"GET OUT!" Takaifuujin screamed.

Without another word Naruto bolted from the room, down the steps, and out the door, not bothering to even look at his comrades as he streaked past.

Kakashi looked stunned. "What the hell happened?"

 

* * *

Alone in the room now, Takaifuujin's face and upper torso sank to the floor as he wept loud, bitter tears for the daughter who would never come home.

 

* * *

Kakashi didn't know what was going on, but his first priority was Naruto. "Hinata. Find Naruto and bring him to the front of the hospital. We'll go pick up Kiba and meet you there."

Hinata dumbly nodded. As the others left her alone she ran in the direction Naruto had gone.  _"Naruto-kun...What happened?"_

She activated her Byakugan after she had traveled a few blocks. Her eyes scanned the buildings and streets. To her right, she saw children playing with a ball. Directly in front of her she saw nothing but people shopping in the market. A little to her left there was a dog licking what seemed to be a fairly recent wound. But in every direction she looked, there was no Naruto. Finally, she looked upward and, to her right a bit, was the object of her search. "There!"

 

* * *

Naruto heard the footsteps behind him but ignored them.

"Naruto-kun?" When she was met with silence, Hinata sat down behind him and put a gentle hand on his shoulder. A pained look crossed her face as her hand was pushed off.

"Please, Hina-chan...just go away," Naruto nearly whispered.

"I can't—Not when you're hurting," Hinata replied softly.

Naruto sighed but didn't reply.

Hinata, not knowing what else to do, sat behind him and waited. She had learned from experience that Naruto would eventually say something if she stayed long enough. She hated seeing him like this and it happened much too often as far as she was concerned.

Naruto felt as though Hinata's eyes were burning holes right through him.  _"For someone so shy she sure can be stubborn,"_  he thought glumly.

 

* * *

Kiba looked at the carnation in his hand, sighed, and knocked on the door.

"Come in," said a female voice.

Kiba opened the door. Lying in the bed was the genin who had helped him in the fight. "Hi," he said with a small smile.

The girl brightened instantly. "Hi!" She sat up, pulled her forest green hair into a ponytail, and secured it with a blue elastic.

"How are you feeling?" Kiba asked as he set the flower in a vase on the nightstand.

The girl stretched her arms above her head. "I'll be a whole lot better when I'm outta here and back on active duty," she said with a wry smile. "My name's Nao. What's yours?"

"Kiba."

Nao gave a short bow. "Nice ta meet ya. Thanks for the flower."

Kiba smiled. "I just wanted to thanks again for helping me. And I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks. Hope we have a chance to fight together again someday," Nao said with a grin.

"Nhm!" Kiba said with a short, sharp nod. "Well, I gotta catch up with my team. See ya around!" he said with a wave.

"Bye!" Nao replied happily.

 

* * *

"She was his daughter," Naruto said suddenly.

Hinata blinked for a moment in confusion. "What?"

Naruto sighed. "The girl I killed...she was the Kazekage's daughter."

Hinata gasped and her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh no!" she whispered sharply.

"Yeah. So much for being allies when I become Hokage," Naruto said sadly.

Hinata frowned with her teeth clenched together, then she bit her lip and released it. After repeating this a few times she spoke. "M-maybe he'll forgive you," she offered feebly.

"I don't think so Hina-chan."

There was a loud thud as someone landed on the roof behind them. "We have to get going you two."

Hinata looked up. "Kurenai-sensei! The poison's gone?"

Kurenai nodded. "Yup. Tsunade-sama's antidote making knowledge is amazing," she said with reverence.

Naruto and Hinata stood up.

"Alright then—let's go. You can tell me what happened on the way," Kurenai said.

 

* * *

Kakashi nodded in approval as he saw Kurenai returning over the rooftops with his wayward charges. "About time you got back."

Kurenai landed. "Kakashi—a word?"

Kakashi squinted in curiosity. He moved next to Kurenai, who leaned in close to whisper something. After a moment his visible eye widened considerably. "I understand." He turned around. "We'll leave at once. I doubt our host would welcome anything we have to say at this point."

The Konoha team nodded and headed for home.

 

* * *

"You all did very well on this mission—especially you, Naruto," Tsunade said with a smile.

Naruto's expression did not change from the sullen look he had worn since Suna. "Thanks," he replied with no real emotion.

Tsunade frowned and looked to Kakashi and Kurenai. "I'm sorry, but would you leave Naruto and I alone? I need to talk to him."

Kurenai nodded. "Of course."

Once they were gone Tsunade moved from behind her desk and sat down next to her son. "Kakashi told me about Katsura." She was answered with silence. "It's sad when this kind of thing happens, but it's unavoidable sometimes. The Kazekage will realize this eventually."

Naruto picked at his nails absentmindedly. "I'm not so sure," he said sadly.

Suddenly, Tsunade looked like she'd remembered something happy. "Hey! I've got something that'll cheer you up," she said, eyes shining.

Naruto only cocked his head to one side in confusion.

 

* * *

Tsunade and Naruto stood outside Haruka's hospital room. Naruto was still confused because his mother had refused to let him in on what was going on. When Tsunade opened the door his breath caught in his throat.

She was sitting up...She was sitting up and eating breakfast off of a tray. Her long red hair flowing out behind her like a carpet made from the sunset. She glanced upward from her breakfast a moment after she heard the door open. "Hokage-sama, how lovely of you to check up on me personally," she said pleasantly. Her gaze fell on Naruto. "Who's this?" she asked with a smile.

Naruto could barely move or breathe. Only one thing escaped his otherwise paralyzed mouth. "Haruka...nee...san..."


	11. The Price of Hate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are gonna shoot me for this chapter. ((Hides))
> 
> ANGST WARNING!

Naruto's voice was barely audible. "Haruka...nee...san..."

"Do you know me, kiddo?" Haruka asked. As she was looking his face over her gaze came to rest on Naruto's whisker marks. A look of realization crossed her face and she turned white as a sheet. There was no mistaking those marks. "Naru-to...chan?" she breathed.

Tsunade smiled. "I'll leave you two alone." She walked away and shut the door behind her.

For a long while, neither Naruto nor Haruka spoke—each frozen from the shock. An announcement over the intercom seemed to free Haruka from her trance. "You are Naruto-chan...aren't you?"

Naruto nodded slowly before running towards her. She opened her arms, closing them around him once he had reached her. "Nee-san!"

"Naruto-chan...I'm so glad you're safe," Haruka said as her eyes misted over.

Naruto relaxed into the warmth he remembered from his early childhood. This was definitely her—the woman who had kept him safe. He gently pulled out of the hug. "I thought you'd never wake up," he said through his joyful tears.

Haruka wiped her eyes and gave a half laugh. "You should have seen my face when the Hokage told me how long I've been asleep."

Naruto chuckled a bit. "It's Naruto- _kun_  now though."

Haruka blinked rapidly. "Oh! I guess you're right. You're not exactly eight years old anymore are you?" she said with a giggle.

Naruto shook his head rapidly. "So, when are they gonna let you out of here?"

"Shouldn't be too much longer." Haruka put her hand to her head.

Naruto was concerned. "Nee-san?"

"I'm fine. I still get tired quite easily. I should probably take a nap," Haruka replied with an apologetic smile.

"Okay." Naruto gave Haruka another quick hug. "I'll come back later."

Haruka nodded. "Okay," she said brightly.

Naruto began to walk away.

"And Naruto-ch...I mean, Naruto-kun. You've grown up very handsome. I always knew you would," Haruka said wistfully.

Naruto blushed a little. "Thanks. See you tonight," he said with a wave.

Haruka waved as well—making sure to be careful of her I.V line. "Bye, sweetie," she said with the tone of a mother saying goodbye to her son.

 

* * *

Kikyo walked into the hospital and was immediately waved over by the girl at the front desk.

"Kikyo-san! Something wonderful happened!"

As she walked over to the girl Kikyo had a strange sense of foreboding. "What is it?"

"Haruka-san woke up!"

Kikyo's eyes widened for an instant before she slipped on her mask of happiness. "That's wonderful! May I see her?"

"Well, she's taking a nap right now. I can take you down there in about three hours or so if you'd like."

"Thank you. I'd like that," Kikyo said.

For some reason, Kikyo's smile gave the receptionist a horrible chill. "N...No problem."

 

* * *

Kikyo glared down at Haruka's sleeping form on the bed in front of her. "You couldn't have just stayed in your coma like a good little demon lover." She looked at the I.V line and a cruel smile played across her lips. "Well, I'll soon take care of that." And with that, she left the room.

 

* * *

Back in her apartment, Kikyo was looking at a small collection of vials and jars on the wall of her bedroom. "If she tells the Hokage how she was put into that coma I'll be jailed for sure," she whispered angrily to no one. "This one will do." She reached up and picked out a vial that had a white liquid inside. "I won't give her the chance to ruin my life a second time."

 

* * *

Naruto ran toward the hospital at top speed—a box of chocolates in one hand.  _"Stupid mission report. I'm way late!"_

"I know visitor hours are over, but I'm only a few minutes late. Pleeeeeeease?" Naruto begged.

The teenage receptionist just couldn't say no to those gorgeous blue eyes. "Okay, but only for a few minutes," she said with a slight blush.

"Thanks!" Naruto said while flashing his golden smile.

As he ran off the receptionist stared after him and sighed. "God, why does he have to be taken?" she said wistfully.

 

* * *

Naruto opened the door to find a nurse adding something to Haruka's IV. "Sorry. I didn't know she was getting medicine."

"That's alright. I'll be on my way shortly," said the nurse sweetly. "There—all done." She turned around and both hers and Naruto's eyes widened, then flattened down into a hatred filled glare.

"You!" they both spat in unison.

"What are you doing in Haruka-nee-san's room?!" Naruto demanded.

"I don't have to explain anything to you, demon!" Kikyo countered.

Suddenly the patient alarm sounded. Naruto looked over at Haruka and, to his horror, saw she was shaking with severe convulsions. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!" he roared.

Kikyo instinctively took a step backward at the killing intent that suddenly poured off the boy in front of her.

"Tamagan (a/n- Soul Eye)!" Naruto said sharply. The purple flame in his eyes seemed to pulsate with his anger.

The heart monitor alarm sounded flat line and Naruto turned toward the sound. Kikyo took the opportunity to run past him and down the hall. Naruto took off in pursuit.

 

* * *

Sasuke sighed. "Will you please just let me in? My brother wanted me to meet this woman. It's important to him."

The nurse frowned in thought. "Alright—Just...be quiet okay? If my boss found out I let  _two_  of you in I'll get fired for sure."

"Thank you." As Sasuke turned to head down the hallway all hell broke loose. The patient alarm went off, sending the receptionist's hand flying to the phone to alert the doctors, and a moment later he heard what sounded like a woman screaming. The sound got closer and closer until he saw a woman in her mid-forties running down the hall and right behind her was a VERY pissed off Naruto.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Naruto roared.

"Naruto, what the hell...?" Sasuke said as he attempted to grab his brother's arm. He was thrown back from the force of the chakra radiating from Naruto's body. He stared after them for a moment with wide eyes before standing up and running out the doors after them.

"NARUTO! WAIT, DAMMIT!" Sasuke was worried—not because he thought the woman might get hurt. He knew his brother wouldn't try to kill someone without good reason—but because he was afraid that if Naruto killed the woman in front of civilians, people might start calling him a monster again.  _"I can't let that happen!"_

A bolt of lightning arced across the sky, followed by thunder, and then suddenly, heavy rain.

"HELP! HELP ME!" Kikyo screamed as they ran through the streets—but everyone had ducked inside to avoid the sudden cloud burst.

Naruto's wet hair had become wilder and changed to a purplish red. His nails had extended into claws and his teeth into fangs. His tamagan had changed slightly. The white dots in their middles were now slits as they'd been when the Kyuubi had been within him, although the purple flame remained unchanged.

Sasuke breathed an inward sigh of relief as they turned off the main road and headed towards the woods. He was amazed by the woman's speed.  _"She's had some ninja training if she can move that fast."_

Naruto couldn't hear his brother calling to him. A red haze had clouded his vision and all he could see was his target. Once he was in range he leaped onto the screaming Kikyo's back and they fell to the ground together in a heap.

"Get off me!" Kikyo yelled, tears of terror rolling down her face.

Naruto hauled off and slugged Kikyo in the face then grabbed her by the front of her dress. "You killed Haruka-nee-san. Your pathetic life ends here," he hissed.

Sasuke's eyes widened.  _"So that's what's going on."_  His breath caught in his throat as he watched Naruto raise his clawed hand, preparing to rip the woman's throat out. He'd never heard Naruto sound so...cold, so calculating, so much...like...like...  _((He saw an image of himself as he stood at the Valley of End, holding Naruto up by the gaping hole in his chest.))_  "Naruto, NO!" he screamed. He ran forward and jumped onto his brother's back.

"Get AWAY!" Naruto yelled as he back fisted Sasuke to the ground.

"LISTEN TO YOURSELF!" Sasuke yelled as he stood up once more. "YOU'VE COMPLETELY LOST IT!"

Naruto punched the woman over and over again. He raised his clawed hand, preparing to slice open Kikyo's throat.

Sasuke had no choice. He had to say it. "DO YOU WANNA TURN INTO ME?!" he screamed in desperation.

Naruto's claws had stopped in time to avoid killing Kikyo, but not in time to avoid making the angry, red, bleeding line that was now emblazoned across her pale throat.

Seeing that this line of reasoning seemed to be working Sasuke continued. "Killing for revenge...That's my destiny...not yours," he pleaded.

Naruto shook his head furiously. "THIS IS DIFFERENT!"

"HOW?!" Sasuke challenged.

Naruto's eyes darted back and forth as his mind frantically tried to come up with a difference... _any_ difference that would allow him to kill the evil he saw in front of him—but he found none. In defeat he closed his hand into a fist and punched Kikyo in the temple, knocking her out. He put his hands over his face, his bitter tears mixing with the rain. It wasn't as if he'd had her with him all along, but to lose Haruka again so soon after their reunion was just too much.

Sasuke, as usual, felt lost. He put a hand on Naruto's shoulder. It was the best 'hug' he could manage.

 

* * *

 

One week later Naruto and Hinata sat on a bench swing on the edge of a playground. He had his head leaned against the right side chain and Hinata's head was on his shoulder. Her hand held his with her thumb rubbing over the back in an effort to sooth him.

"Why does everything seem to happen to me?" Naruto asked glumly

Hinata frowned. "I don't know," she said gently.

Kakashi and Tomoyo, hand in hand, walked into the playground. Kakashi put up a hand in greeting. "Yo," he said, his eye crinkled in a smile.

Naruto and Hinata just sat there, eyes wide at Kakashi...his mask was gone. "K-K-Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto sputtered.

Kakashi eh-hemmed. "Yeah, well. I decided I didn't need it anymore." He went silent for a moment, looking like he was trying to choose his next words. "I realized a mask wasn't necessary...for someone who's engaged."

With a grin, Tomoyo held up her left hand—a small diamond glinted in the sun from her ring finger. Hinata's eyes widened slightly but her expression quickly changed into one of joy. Naruto just sat there with his jaw on the ground, stunned into utter silence.

Tomoyo suddenly looked nervous. "Naruto-kun? Are you upset?"

Naruto shook his head as he came out of his shock-induced trance. "Ah, no—g-gomen," he said, at last, rubbing the back of his neck. A grin spread over his face. "This is awesome!" He ran up to Tomoyo and gave her a huge hug.

"Congratulations!" Hinata chirped happily as she stood up.

Naruto released Tomoyo and looked at Kakashi. He folded his arms. "I guess this means I'm gonna be related to you," he said with his arms folded and a bemused smile.

Kakashi chuckled. "Yup."

Naruto cocked an eyebrow. "So, if you're marrying my cousin, then that means you're gonna ditch those perverted books right?"

Kakashi looked positively horrified. "I...ah...that is, ah...erm..."

Tomoyo put her hand over her stuttering fiancé's mouth. "I'll handle this," she said with a smile.

Kakashi's face spoke volumes of his gratitude.

"It's okay, Naruto-kun. I don't mind if he reads it..." Tomoyo looked at Kakashi with a feral grin. "...as long as he finds me afterward," she said with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

Kakashi smiled wryly. "God I love you."

Naruto's expression was one of abject horror. It was very obvious by the tinge of green gracing his skin that he had images that were  _very_  wrong running through his head.

Kakashi ah-hemmed. "Anyway. We have to visit Tsunade-sama to get the necessary papers. We'll see you later."

Hinata nodded. "Nhm!" she said with a smile.

As Kakashi and Tomoyo started to leave Naruto kept staring. Tomoyo turned around. "Oh yeah," she said to Naruto. "I got something to show you. Meet me at the north training field at four."

"What is it?" Naruto asked.

Tomoyo grinned. "You'll see." She and Kakashi walked away, leaving behind a very confused Naruto.


	12. Road to the Past

Naruto sat in the middle of the field, wondering where the hell his cousin was. He'd been right on time, but she was nowhere to be seen.  _"Dammit—engaged to him for one day and she's already picking up his bad habits."_

Kakashi's news had temporarily distracted him from thinking of Haruka but now she seeped back into his thoughts. "If only I'd had time," he quietly berated himself.

Finally, he saw Tomoyo emerge from the edge of the woods. "Oi! Bout time!"

Tomoyo jogged over to her younger cousin. "Sorry. I couldn't find my shoes," she explained between breaths.

Naruto looked skeptical but let it drop. "So what do ya got to show me?" he asked without much enthusiasm.

Tomoyo frowned. "Are you okay?"

Naruto grimaced slightly. "Not really."

Tomoyo sat down next to him in the soft grass. "You wanna talk about it?"

Naruto sighed. "It's my fault she's dead," he replied bitterly.

Tomoyo knew who he was talking about. "How is it your fault? You didn't make Kikyo kill her," she offered.

"No...But I had the power to stop her before she did." Naruto clenched his teeth. "She was the one who put Haruka-nee-san in a coma in the first place."

"What?" Tomoyo said with a confused expression.

"When I was nine I was walking to Haruka-nee-san's house and Kikyo tried to kill me," Naruto said with a regretful glare.

Tomoyo made a short gasp.

"Kikyo tried to crush me with a rock but Haruka-nee-san shielded me...and the rock hit her instead..." Naruto said, his voice choking up a bit.

"But then why wasn't Kikyo in jail?" Tomoyo said with a twinge of anger in her voice.

Naruto clenched his fists. "Because my mind blocked out the whole thing. There was no one to tell Sandaime-sama what happened. I remembered about seven months ago when Kyuubi made me watch my worst memories..."

Tomoyo was about to interrupt with a question but Naruto held up his hand.

"It's a long story," he said quickly. He sighed and went on. "I figured Kikyo was already in jail...so I never told kaa-san."

Tomoyo's face showed her understanding. "Oh..."

Naruto's breathing became slightly erratic as he attempted to control his emotions. "I...I never dreamed she got away with that..." He lost his battle and the tears made their way down his face.

Tomoyo bit her lower lip. "I don't know what to say."

"She got hurt because of me! Because people thought I was a monster!" Naruto cried loudly. "And she died because I was too STUPID to tell someone what I knew!"

Tomoyo felt the tears well up in her eyes as she watched her younger cousin. She remembered the day after Haruka's death.

_(("Are you gonna be okay?" Tomoyo asked Naruto tentatively._

_Naruto looked up at her with an odd expression. "I'll be fine. It's not like she was around for very long."_

_Tomoyo was shocked at the callousness of Naruto's statement. She frowned, resisting the urge to slap him. "Well, at least Kikyo is getting what's coming to her."_

_Naruto closed his eyes for a second. "Yeah." He looked at the sky and then back at Tomoyo. "I gotta go. Kaa-san's waiting for me."_

_Before Tomoyo could respond, Naruto had run off.))_

Tomoyo sighed.  _"I knew it. He was lying that day. He must've still been in shock."_  She did the only thing she could think of and wrapped her arms around the crying boy.

"Why?! Why couldn't she stay with me? I only had her back for one day!" Naruto cried in anguish.

As she let Naruto cry Tomoyo looked at the sky and pleaded.  _"Kami-sama, please let that bitch get the death penalty."_

 

* * *

TenTen frowned as she glanced at a bird that had begun chirping. It sat on a power line above the street bench she and Sasuke were sitting on. "So when's the trial?"

"Two days from now," Sasuke said as he uncrossed his arms and stood up. "I gotta go. Sakura wanted me to tell her as soon as I found out." He made half a chuckle. "She'd be so mad if she knew I didn't tell her first."

"It's not your fault I'm nosy," TenTen said with a laugh.

Sasuke smirked. "I'll see you later," he said as he turned to leave.

"Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke turned back around. "Hm?"

"You never told me how you stopped Naruto from killing Kikyo."

Sasuke thought for a moment. "I just told him what he needed to hear."

TenTen frowned in confusion. "But what did you...?"

"Nothing you need to know," Sasuke interrupted. His expression clearly told TenTen to drop it, so she did.

"Okay. Later then," she said with a small smile.

Sasuke nodded and left.

TenTen, with a mopey expression on her face, rested the bottom of her face in her hands. "Damn that boy is confusing," she muttered.

 

* * *

Tomoyo gave Naruto a comforting smile. "We can do the surprise tomorrow. Why don't you get some rest?"

A puffy-eyed Naruto shook his head. "Naw. I think I'm gonna train for a while—see if I can clear my head."

Tomoyo nodded. "Kay." She stood up and kissed Naruto on the top of his head. "Ja na."

"Ja," Naruto answered—and his cousin walked away.

 

* * *

The Akatsuki leader glared at Deidara. "You assured me using the Ichibi as bait would bring success."

Deidara frowned in regret. "I didn't expect others would join in the fight. Any other Jinchuuriki would have been abandoned by their village."

The leader sighed. "We will have another chance. Itachi—are you prepared?"

"Hai," Itachi replied coolly.

"Hey, Itachi, are you sure you want to do this?" Kisame asked with a sideways glance at his partner. "Your little brother is mentally unstable as it is. This could break him."

"If it achieves our goal, then the sacrifice is necessary," Itachi said darkly.

 

* * *

Hinata had gone to the training field with the intention of asking him to dinner, but she had only gotten as far as the edge of the field. She'd been frozen to the spot for last five minutes because of the sight in front of her from which she could not tear her gaze.

When she had arrived at the field she found her boyfriend, minus his shirt, doing taijutsu drills. His skin had a thin sheen of sweat over it which shimmered a bit in the light of the setting sun. The look of intensity in his eyes had captivated her and she was lost in them.

Naruto knew someone was watching him. He wasn't sure who, but he did know it wasn't an enemy due to the chakra signature so he largely ignored them. He held out his hand and the familiar multi-colored ball of light appeared on it. He nodded in approval at the swirling ball, then held out the other hand and repeated the process. He took a deep breath and turned on a large boulder to his left. "Nibai rasengan! (A/N-Dual rasengan)" He charged forward, slamming into the boulder with the force of a wrecking ball—it shattered into rubble.

Hinata watched as he was thrown backward from the force of the explosion.

He stared at the pile of smaller rocks that occupied the space the boulder had been in a moment ago, breathing hard. "Shit...still too much power..." he said in between gasps. He looked towards the woods. "Are you gonna stare at me all night or are you gonna come out?" he asked loudly.

Hinata stepped out from behind a tree. "S-Sorry, Naruto-kun," she said with a heavy blush that was barely visible in the twilight.

Naruto smiled instantly. "Hina-chan!" He got into a more comfortable sitting position as she walked over to him.

"That was amazing, Naruto-kun," Hinata said with pride.

Naruto, still slightly out of breath, grinned in embarrassment and scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah well, it still needs some work. I put in too much power and I still can't make them both at the same time."

"I still think it's amazing," Hinata said with a smile.

Naruto smiled back gratefully. "I think I'm gonna go home for the night. I'm beat."

"Can I walk with you?"

Naruto grinned. "Sure."

They stood up and started moving.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked after a minute.

"Yeah?"

"I was w-wondering...can I go with you to the t-trial?" Hinata asked tentatively as she stared at the ground.

Naruto's smile evaporated. "I'd rather you didn't," he said with tension in his voice.

"W-Why not?"

Naruto sighed and kicked a rock. "I don't know how I'll act when I see  _her_  again. If I freak out..." He paused for a moment and stared up at the moon. "...I don't want you to see me like that."

Hinata entwined her fingers with his. "I want to be there for you. N-No matter what," she stated firmly.

Naruto sighed and put his arms around her. "Thanks," he whispered. After a moment he let out a heavy sigh. "Okay."

Hinata held Naruto tighter. "Thank you."

They suddenly heard a loud eh-hem from in front of them and quickly broke apart.

Hinata's eyes were wide with nervousness. "O-Otou-san!"

Hiashi stood there with his arms folded. "Did you forget you have diplomacy lessons today?"

Hinata looked embarrassed. "H-Hai. Gomen, Otou-san."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Hina-chan," Naruto said with a reassuring smile.

Hinata nodded and she and her father left.

The slight look of displeasure Hiashi had directed at him hadn't escaped Naruto.  _"I wonder if he'll ever accept me?"_  he thought sullenly.

 

* * *

Tomoyo and Naruto were in the training field again. She paced in front of Naruto with a frown on her face. "I don't know. This is kind of a family matter."

"Sasuke is my nii-san," Naruto said firmly.

Tomoyo gave him a funny look. "What the heck are you talking about?"

"Do you know about the Uchiha bonding seal?" Naruto asked hopefully.

Tomoyo looked startled for a moment before smiling. "If that's the case then, of course, he can come."

Naruto smiled widely. "I'll be right back!" He jumped to his feet and ran toward town.

 

* * *

"SASUKE!" a loud voice rang throughout the village. Many citizens covered their ears and glared at the green and blue blur as it flew past them.

"Quiet down!" yelled a woman who was buying some fruit.

"Sorry!" Naruto called back.

The woman shook her head and sighed. "I wonder if he'll ever stop being so loud?"

" _This is taking too long."_  Naruto's hands formed his favorite seal. "Kage bunshin no jutsu!" Twelve Narutos shot off in different directions.

 

* * *

Sasuke sighed when the spiky-haired shadow blocked out the sun. He opened one eye. "What?"

"I need you to come with me," Naruto said excitedly.

Sasuke groaned. He'd been enjoying the quiet and really didn't feel like getting up. "Why?"

"Tomoyo-san has a surprise for us!"

Sasuke winced at the volume of his brother's voice. "Fine." He got to his feet and dusted himself off.

Naruto grinned. "Great! Meet us at training field ten!"

Sasuke blinked in surprise as the clone poofed out of existence. "I hate it when he does that."

 

* * *

Naruto, Tomoyo, and Sasuke walked ever deeper into the woods.

Sasuke was getting impatient. He really didn't feel like doing much of anything at that moment and walking toward a goal that he didn't know anything about held very little interest for him. He sighed and slapped the mosquito that had been attempting to procure lunch from his neck.

Tomoyo stopped walking and crouched down. She seemed to be looking for something as she dusted dirt from the forest floor. Naruto and Sasuke watched in curiosity. Suddenly, she smiled. "Found it." She stood up and pointed down at the spot that had been the focus of her little dig.

Naruto's eyebrows went up when he saw that his cousin's dusting had revealed what looked like a flat stone from a walkway. "What's this?"

Tomoyo's smile widened and she flashed through a series of seals. "Futon: kin boufuu no jutsu (A/N-Wind type: little windstorm technique)!" She sucked in a deep breath and blew it out with great force. A good sized gust of wind blew through the area in front of them, revealing a long stone path. She held out a hand in order to wave them ahead. "Follow it."

Both boys looked at Tomoyo in curiosity for a moment but did as they were instructed. As they walked Naruto began to notice other things that seemed out of place in the forest—a small dragon statue on each side of the path, lamp posts covered in vines, and finally, as they cleared the top of a hill, a long wall, also covered in vines. In the middle of this wall was a massive double door. Each side of the door had one half of a dragon molded onto it in bronze.

Naruto's heart pulsed with excitement. "Tomoyo-san...this is..." he breathed.

Tomoyo smiled. "The Namikaze complex." She looked at her cousin. "Welcome home."


	13. Karma

"The Namikaze complex..." Naruto whispered in wide-eyed wonder. He walked forward and slowly ran his hand over the dragon on the front gate.

Tomoyo held up an ornate key, which glinted in the beams of sunlight that broke through the leaves above. "Let's see if this thing still works." She walked up to the gate, inserted the key and turned it. She smiled when the lock clicked. "After you," she said to Naruto with a wave.

Naruto took a deep breath and, with some effort, pushed open the heavy wooden doors. It wasn't quite what he was expecting. It looked somewhat like the Uchiha complex in basic layout, but it was a little smaller and quite run down. The dragons were everywhere—in signs, in sculptures—there was even a fountain in the center of a snake-like dragon wound around a tall, thin stone. It looked like, at one time, the great mouth of this dragon had had water pouring from it.

Sasuke looked around as though he were thinking of bad memories. He didn't like being in clan compounds—they reminded him of what he once had. It was the very reason he had opted to live in his own apartment rather than the ancestral grounds of his family.

Tomoyo stepped up next to Naruto, who was still staring at the fountain. "The dragon was our clan symbol." She walked over and touched the fountain's face. "My grandmother told me that long ago, our clan was able to summon them."

Naruto's eyes widened and he turned to Tomoyo. "Dragons?!"

Tomoyo nodded. "Nhm. But the contract was lost several generations ago—if it even really existed, that is." She looked around at the state of her family's home. Most of the buildings had some structural damage to them, but nothing severe. Honestly, it wasn't as bad as she thought it would be—Although there was still the problem of the vines that were everywhere, and the trees that had so rudely burst through some parts of the once pristine streets. She sighed. "So...still want to try and fix up this dump?" she said with a bemused smile.

A determined look set onto Naruto's face. "More than ever."

 

* * *

Naruto knelt on the somewhat uncomfortable bench-like pillow with tightness in his chest. He squeezed Hinata's hand, who returned the gesture. Sakura, Sasuke, and the rest of his class all sat around him. Lee, TenTen, and Neji were there also. The rest of the 'seats' were filled with other Konoha citizens.

Tsunade sat down on a large pillow which was on a slightly raised section of floor at the head of the room. She had actually bothered to wear her Hokage robes, which only showed how seriously she took the entire matter. She turned to Kurenai, who had been standing to her right. "Bring her in."

Kurenai nodded. "Hai, Tsunade-sama." Discarding flashy ninja exits for the sake of the atmosphere, she walked out of the room. A few seconds later she reappeared, leading a nervous looking Kikyo.

Naruto felt his teeth clench of their own accord as he watched the object of his hatred walk past him. Hinata squeezed his hand again in a show of support.

Kurenai made Kikyo kneel on a small pillow on the floor in front of Tsunade. Once Kurenai had resumed her previous position Tsunade spoke. "Yuuchi Kikyo. You are here today on charges of assault with the intent to kill, and first-degree murder. Due to the fact that there isn't a chance in hell of you being acquitted, this trial is mainly a formality. I will, however, allow you one attempt at convincing me not to have you gutted," she said with grim finality.

A positively horrified Kikyo sat there with her mouth hanging open. She hadn't been expecting the Hokage to take such a strong stance on Naruto's side. She swallowed and spoke. "I did...what anyone loyal to Konoha would have done," she began slowly in a shaky voice, "I rid us of someone who sympathized with an evil monster that killed hundreds of our citizens." Her face was now etched with an expression of indignant anger. She stood, and pointed sharply at Naruto. "And anyone who attempts to kill this  _thing_  should be praised as a hero, not brought to trial," she said bravely in the hopes of garnering support from her peers. She sat back down, her head held high in defiance.

Tsunade barely managed to control the rage that was welling up inside of her. She turned to the onlookers. "Would anyone else like to say something relating to this case?" She scanned the crowd and the knot in her stomach tightened when a man actually had the spine to stand up. But what came out of his mouth, was not what she had expected.

He looked around at the others in the room, took a deep breath, and spoke. "I don't know about anyone else, but I hold nothing against Naruto." He turned toward the boy in question. "Yes, I was afraid of him until I knew more about his seal, but I never hated him. What I do hate," he turned to Kikyo, "are close-minded people like her—People who hate others without having all the facts. I say give her to Naruto and let him decide her punishment."

All but one of the villagers nodded or made sounds of agreement. Naruto had a truly grateful smile on his face. Tears streamed down Kikyo's face as she stared in disbelief at her peers.

Tsunade, smiling, turned to her son. "Well, Naruto? You heard them. What do you think Kikyo's punishment should be?"

Naruto just sat there, flabbergasted. So many ideas ran through his head that he had trouble sorting them out. Suddenly, his expression turned to ice—and when he spoke his voice seemed to bring down the temperature of the room by several degrees. "Ikijigoku no jutsu (A/N-Living hell technique)."

Everyone in the room looked confused. "What is that?" A woman in her early thirties whispered to her husband. The husband shrugged.

All the color had drained from Tsunade's face. She knew exactly what Naruto was talking about. "H...How do you know about that technique?"

"I'll tell you later," Naruto replied.

After a moment Tsunade cleared her throat. "Are you sure this is what you want?" she asked carefully.

"I want her to know what it's like...to be in her own personal hell," Naruto said bitterly.

Tsunade swallowed before nodding. "Alright then. Yuuchi Kikyo. You are hereby sentenced to Ikijigoku no jutsu. This will be carried out tomorrow morning at eight a.m. Kurenai...take her back to her cell."

Kurenai nodded and grabbed Kikyo by the elbow. This action seemed to snap Kikyo out of her stunned trance. "NO! Nooooo!" She struggled against Kurenai's grip to no avail. "Let me go!" she screamed just as the doors were shut behind her.

Everyone got up to leave and Tsunade walked over to her son. "Naruto, can you stay behind for a few minutes?" she asked quietly.

Naruto nodded.

"May I stay, Tsunade-sama?" Hinata asked.

Tsunade frowned in thought and was about to refuse the request when she saw Hinata squeeze Naruto's hand. This caused her to remember that the last time she'd left Hinata out of the loop it hadn't turned out so well. "Alright." She turned to her son. "How did you find out about that jutsu? It's forbidden."

Naruto looked as though he were trying to decide how to start. "Do you know about the whole thing with Mizuki just before I graduated?"

"Yes. He tricked you into stealing..." Realization dawned on Tsunade's face. "Of course." Her hand went to her forehead and she sighed. "I should have known. You learned kage bunshin from the forbidden scroll, didn't you?"

Naruto nodded.

"All this time I assumed Kakashi taught it to you. And of course, you would have looked at the other jutsu on the list." Her expression became grave. "You know what this jutsu will do to her?"

Naruto set his jaw. "I do."

"What will it do, Tsunade-sama?" Hinata asked tentatively.

"Ikijigoku is a jutsu I hoped I'd never have to use again. I've only done it once. It paralyzes a person completely. They can't move, can't speak—they can't even turn their head. It basically turns them into a statue with a soul."

Hinata gasped and her hand flew to her mouth.

"I created Ikijigoku in order to punish the man who killed Nawaki. The man died a few years before I came back to the village, but I was told by the nurse that there wasn't a day gone by when his eyes hadn't begged for death." Her eyes showed a bit of shame. "I'll do this Naruto, but only because it's for you," Tsunade said firmly.

"I know." Naruto hugged his mother. "Arigato, Kaa-san," he said with a whisper that suggested he was holding back tears.

 

* * *

The room was deep in the hidden caverns of the Hokage monument. It was at least fifty feet in diameter, dark, damp, and completely isolated. Torches, dancing with flame, were the only illumination. Naruto was leaning against the wall, watching his mother—his eyes occasionally darting to Kikyo, who sat in the middle of a huge sealing circle. Two jounin guarded the only exit and Shizune stood next to Naruto, her left arm around his shoulders in a gesture of support. Sasuke sat on the floor near them, looking indifferent.

Hinata had asked to go with Naruto, but he had declined her request. It wasn't something he wanted someone as sensitive as her to see.

Tears poured from Kikyo's eyes as Tsunade finished the last of the seals on her body and began the hand seals that would complete the jutsu. "You can't do this! It's inhuman!" she cried. She struggled against her bonds, but she was held fast by the ropes that held her to the heavy iron chair she sat on.

Tsunade looked up as she performed the seals. "That's a funny statement...coming from you."

"LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!" Kikyo screamed again and again.

Tsunade's hands moved faster. She didn't know how much more she could take of the woman's caterwauling and not give in. Finally, the last seal was formed. "Ikijigoku no jutsu!" She slammed her hands down on the edge of the sealing circle and it began to glow.

"AHHHHHHHH!" Kikyo screamed as the sealing symbols snaked their way onto her body and disappeared into her head.

Shizune felt Naruto recoil a bit at the scene in front of him and gave his shoulders a short squeeze. "It'll be over soon," she whispered. But she had mistaken the reason for his shudder.

"I hope not..." Naruto said in a bitterly cold voice.

Shizune looked at him in disbelief. The expression he wore made her breath hitch in her throat. "Naruto...kun?"

"I want her to scream forever..." The look on Naruto's face was one of barely controlled rage and hatred. "...for Haruka-nee-san."

 

* * *

Sasuke was sitting outside his apartment on the small porch-roof-like overhang that connected to the building under his living room window. An image of Naruto's face during Kikyo's sealing came into his mind and he sighed. It was a little saddening to see his brother like that. If it had been Itachi, Sasuke would have gleefully drawn the seals on his body himself. But to see Naruto wishing for such extreme suffering of a person to continue forever was just...unnatural—like saying the sun could suddenly produce rain.  _"That wasn't Naruto."_

"Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke looked down into the street and saw TenTen waving up at him. "What?"

"You wanna spar?"

Sasuke appeared to think about it for a moment. "Yeah. I'll be down in a minute."

TenTen nodded with a smile as Sasuke disappeared into his apartment.

Sasuke grabbed a few weapons and leaped out the window to street level. "Let's go," he said nonchalantly.

 

* * *

Sasuke adjusted and readjusted his grip on the unfamiliar weapon in his hands. Truthfully, he much preferred kunai or straight hand to hand. "Tell me again why I agreed to this?"

TenTen readied the bo staff in her hands. "Because any other weapons I use could seriously maim you?" she said with a feral smile.

"If you could even get close to me," Sasuke said with a smirk.

TenTen raised her bo to an attack stance. "Heh. You aren't lucky enough to have a giant fan to blow away my weapons."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at that. The only knowledge he had of her fighting ability was what Naruto had told him of her fight against Temari. "Let's see what you've got," he said with a smile.

"Happy to oblige," TenTen replied.

Both teenagers rushed forward. Sasuke was a little faster so they met more on TenTen's side than in the middle. Their staffs hit each other, making an 'X' and a loud crack that resonated through the trees.

"You're strong—I'll give you that," Sasuke said as he struggled to keep his staff from losing the pushing match.

"You don't know the half of it!" TenTen put on a burst of strength, pushing Sasuke's staff hard to the right and then upwards. This freed her staff for a split second, letting her swing the end at his legs. He barely dodged it.

TenTen swung her staff in an arc, forcing Sasuke to put his up in a horizontal guard. Already he was wishing he hadn't agreed to not use his sharingan. His unfamiliarity with the weapon was a disadvantage. He'd been given a rundown on the basics before she gave him the staff, but that was it. He managed to shove her far enough away that he could get his weapon back into an offensive stance and then blocked several frontal attacks. They both jumped backward and stood there for a moment, breathing hard.

"Not bad for a beginner," TenTen admitted.

"Thanks, but I won't be for long," Sasuke replied smugly between breaths.

"Heh. You're about to find out why I'm called a weapons expert." TenTen charged forward again.

 

* * *

Tsunade sat across from Tomoyo in her office. Her face showed she was deciding on something. "Do you think he's ready?"

Tomoyo nodded. "If he works hard at it."

Tsunade smirked. "If there's anyone good at working hard, it's Naruto. Go ahead."

Tomoyo smiled widely. "Thank you Tsunade-sama."

 

* * *

"I don't know, Sakura-san," Lee said with an uncertain expression. They were sitting on the couch in Sakura's living room. He protectively rubbed a hand over the green suit that he'd worn so long. "Gai sensei would be very disappointed."

"Don't you think it was time you were your own person?" Sakura asked as she placed her hand on his.

Lee frowned. "I guess...but I really do like my suit."

"It could still be green," Sakura mentioned in an attempt at compromise.

"Sakura-san...do you like me for who I am?"

Sakura blinked for a moment, as the question had caught her by surprise. She smiled and put her hand on his cheek. "Of course I do."

Lee looked down. "Then why do you keep trying to change me?"

Sakura looked a little stunned. "I..."

"I grew my hair out for you. I even changed the style. I mean, I like my hair this way, but I want to have something that's still me."

Sakura looked down—ashamed. "You're right. I'm sorry, Lee-kun. I won't ask again." She looked up at him. "Can you forgive me?" she asked with a worried expression.

Lee smiled softly. "Of course I can." He pulled her into his arms.

"I love you, Lee-kun." Sakura pulled out of the hug and smiled. "And I'd love you if you dyed your hair green to match your suit," she said as she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Please don't do that though," she added quickly.

Lee laughed. "I won't."

 

* * *

Naruto looked up from his ramen when he heard a knock on the door but went back to eating. Since his mother was the Hokage he was fairly used to strangers coming to the house all day and it had somewhat desensitized him to the excitement of visitors. His interest was reinstated, however, when Izumi came back in and told him the visitor was for him.

 

* * *

Tomoyo's face brightened as Naruto entered the living room. "Hi, Naruto."

"Hi." Naruto replied with a smile. "What's up?"

"Come to the complex with me. There's something I wanna show you," Tomoyo said with a grin.

"I thought you showed me the whole place already?"

"I did."

Naruto was extremely confused. "Huh?"

"And bring Minato's kunai."

"Why?"

Tomoyo smirked. "You'll see."

 

* * *

Naruto looked around him. He and Tomoyo were in the middle of the Namikaze private training field that was adjacent to the backside of the complex. It was a fairly large field—about the size of four football fields—but it was horribly overgrown. The only things that really clued anyone into the fact that it was indeed a training field were the training dummies and a few cracked trees here and there.

"Okay," Tomoyo began, "I brought you here to train on some new techniques."

Naruto looked around the field with a skeptical eye. "How can I learn anything here? There's no room."

Tomoyo smiled. "Well, for this stage of the training you won't need much room. I only chose this field for nostalgia sake." She picked a clear spot on the ground and sat down, motioning for Naruto to do the same.

Naruto sat and watched curiously as Tomoyo brought out a writing brush, a bottle of ink, and some sheets of paper. "What's that for? I'm not gonna be learning some sissy brush jutsu am I?"

Tomoyo shook her head fervently. "No no no. I would never do that to you. You're gonna be practicing sealing jutsus," she said as she opened the ink bottle. "This stuff is just for you to take notes," she said, handing him the brush.

Naruto eyed the paper and brush skeptically. "But I've never done seals."

"I know, but you've got to learn them if you're going to use this technique."

"What's it called?"

Tomoyo gave her younger cousin a broad smile. "Hiraishin no Jutsu..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiraishin no Jutsu-Flying Thunder God Technique
> 
> Now, before I have people complaining that Naruto is learning an 'S' class jutsu so fast...he's not. It'll be another few chapters till he actually gets around to Hiraishin. Seals first, then Shunshin no Jutsu, and theeeeeen Hiraishin.
> 
> I hope you liked Kikyo's punishment. I certainly enjoyed making her scream. ((Evil grin))


	14. Underneath the Underneath

"You're gonna teach me Chichiuei's jutsu?!" Naruto said excitedly.

"Yup. But there're other things to do first. You need to work on sealing jutsus first. With any luck there'll soon be a new 'yellow flash' of Konoha," Tomoyo said with a grin.

"YATTA!"

"But seal work comes first. If you don't know the mechanics behind this you won't have a chance in hell of mastering the actual jutsu." Tomoyo opened up a scroll of her own and pulled out an extra brush. Now, paint a circle in the center."

Naruto did as he was instructed. The circle was a tad sloppy but it would suit its purpose well enough.

Tomoyo took the plain sheet of paper from Naruto's other hand. "Good. Now draw these symbols around the outer edge." She painted the needed symbols as Naruto watched. "Okay, your turn."

Tomoyo watched in disdain at the slow pace of Naruto's painting. "Umm. You work on that for a while. I'm going to see if I can make this place a little more presentable." She reached into a bag she had brought along and pulled out a wad of explosive tags.

Naruto watched in curiosity as she placed tags at the bases of four trees, making sure to place them on the side opposite their position. Tomoyo put her hands in the ram seal and the tags exploded. The trees fell with a loud groan, shaking the ground as they hit. She was about to continue on to the next set of trees when she noticed Naruto was not doing his seals. She pointed sharply down at his scroll. "Paint!" she commanded.

Naruto quickly went back to work.

Tomoyo brought down four more trees, then looked around the field and frowned. "Hmm. This is gonna take a while."

Naruto was distracted again when he heard a familiar phrase.  **"Kage bunshin no jutsu!"**  He looked up to see twenty Tomoyo's populating the field. Each clone took a stack of tags from the original and went to do more damage. He didn't know why, but seeing another member of his family use his favorite jutsu made him happy. He was snapped out of his reverie as another " **Paint!"**  was directed his way. A few seconds later a deafening explosion rocked the field—and the resulting crash from the trees hitting the ground was almost as loud. He just sat there with a thunderstruck (A/N- pretty much means WTF) look on his face for a moment.  _"She's completely insane."_

 

* * *

Itachi walked at a fairly slow pace. He wasn't looking forward to what he had to do. When he'd spared Sasuke so many years ago it had been because other than his parents, Sasuke was the only member of his family he hadn't loathed. He remembered back to that day.

_((Itachi sliced through one of his aunts with a cold expression on his face. Staying emotionless was the only way he could pull off what he was doing without going insane. But soon Konoha would be rid of the clan and he, Sasuke, and his mother and father could live a normal life in peace._

_He thrust his sword through the belly of one of his cousins and sighed. This was the last one. He sheathed his sword and walked back to his house. The instant he was near his front door he felt a horribly dark chakra and yanked the door open._

_He burst into the living room and came across the grizzly sight of his parent's corpses. "You BASTARD! What the hell do you think you're doing?!"_

_Orochimaru's expression was one of indifference. "We can't leave witnesses."_

_Itachi dropped to his knees beside his parent's bodies. "Kaa-san! Tou-san" he cried._

" _Is there anyone else?" Orochimaru asked._

_Unseen by the snake Sannin, Itachi's eyes widened for a moment in fear as an image of Sasuke flashed through his mind. "No," he said, praying to god his tone of voice didn't give anything away. "There's no one."_

_Orochimaru looked skeptical but let it slide. "Alright then. And don't forget our offer."_

_Itachi numbly nodded. "Hai."_

_He thought about Sasuke as Orochimaru walked off. He also thought about his best friend who he had killed in order to bring about this day. Everything was his fault and he knew his little brother would hate him for it._ _**"It's better that way,"** _ _he thought dismally. He knew that if Sasuke knew the truth he would chase down the Akatsuki and would be killed by them. At least if he was chasing Itachi then he was trying to kill someone who didn't want him dead.))_

Itachi created a bunshin. "Inform him I am here." The clone nodded slightly and vanished. "I'm sorry...Sasuke."

 

* * *

Tomoyo walked over to Naruto and looked down at his scrollwork. Her eyes widened as she looked back and forth between Naruto's scroll and her demonstration—they were barely recognizable as the same symbols.  _"His handwriting's actually worse than Minato's,"_ she thought as her eyebrow twitched.

Naruto looked up from his work as he finished the last symbol. "Done! What'd ya think?" he said as he held up his work proudly.

Tomoyo made a strained smile. "It's...not bad." She eh-hemmed. "Okay let's try sealing something." she scanned the ground for a moment and found a slightly less than fist-sized rock. She picked it up, tossed it into the air a short height and caught it. "This outta do." She handed it to Naruto. "Now, place it in the middle of the scroll."

Naruto did as he was instructed and made some seals. He slammed his hands down on either side of the seal. "Fuuin no Jutsu!"

" _Kami-sama, let those symbols be good enough for it to work,"_ Tomoyo prayed.

The puff of smoke dissipated and Tomoyo's eyebrow twitched once again. Only half the rock had been sealed—the other half still lay on the scroll. "Umm...well...that's a new one."

Naruto frowned. "I don't get it. I did everything you said," he said as he picked up the remainder of the rock and studied it.

Tomoyo scratched the back of her neck nervously and sat down. "Yeah, you did...technically."

"What do you mean...technically?" Naruto asked with a slight pout.

"Well...Lemme put it this way—when Minato was alive I thought that no one could possibly have worse handwriting than him. Today...I have been proven wrong."

Now Naruto's eye twitched. "Are you telling me the seal didn't work because my handwriting's lousy?"

Tomoyo grimaced. "Pretty much."

Naruto sighed heavily. "Fine. I guess I'll take this home and practice then."

Tomoyo smiled. "Sounds like a good idea. I'll go home after I finish clearing this place out."

Naruto stood up and looked around the field. Although you could now actually see its borders there were still forty or so trees lying all over the place. "How are you gonna get rid of 'em all?"

Tomoyo glanced around at all the trees slowly and then put her finger to her lips in thought. "You know what? That's a good point." She grinned in embarrassment. "Guess I'll go home now."

Naruto laughed and they headed for the path that led back to the main village.

 

* * *

Sasuke, TenTen, and Lee lay on their backs in the grassy training field. They'd been there for quite a while and TenTen was getting frustrated at staying still for so long. "You guys wanna go get ramen?" she asked hopefully.

"Not when the night sky is so full of wonders," Lee replied with a tone of awe in his voice.

TenTen pouted and traced a line of stars with her eyes. After a moment she tried again. "Sasuke-kun, you wanna train?"

"No thanks," Sasuke replied.

TenTen sighed and shifted her gaze to the trees. It wasn't long before she spotted something odd in one of them and squinted in an attempt to help her vision cut through the darkness. Finally, she turned to her friends. "There's someone watching us in that tree over there."

Both boys looked at her with confused expressions before checking to see what she was talking about. After a moment Lee shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "I don't think it's anyone I know."

TenTen frowned. "How bout you, Sasuke-kun?" When there was no response she looked toward him and her breath hitched in her throat. His eyes held a coldness she had never seen before, and it scared her. Of course, she was relatively new to Sasuke's world and as such hadn't seen much of his dangerous side. "S...Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke didn't reply, but instead simply jumped up and disappeared in the direction of the tree.

"Sasuke!" TenTen yelled as she and Lee stood up. Both teens gave chase, their feet pounding away at the moonlit earth.

 

* * *

Naruto had long ago parted ways with Tomoyo and was now headed to Ichiraku for a late dinner. He was about to push aside the entrance fabric when a familiar blue and white blur shot past him. A moment later TenTen and Lee also ran by. "Looks like dinner'll have to wait," he said sadly. He took off after his friends, pumping more chakra into his legs to give himself an extra burst of speed.

After a few seconds, Naruto caught up with Lee and TenTen. "What's going on?"

"He's chasing after someone, but we have no idea who," Lee answered.

"What does the person look like?" Naruto asked.

"It was hard to tell, but I think he had on a cloak and he might've had black hair," TenTen replied in an unsure tone.

Naruto's eyes went wide as an image of Itachi popped into his head.  _"I hope it's not who I think it is."_

 

* * *

Every vein in Sasuke's body pulsed with adrenaline. Rational thought had left the forefront of his mind as he pushed on nearly completely on instinct. Suddenly, just as he got within range of his elder brother there was a puff of smoke and Itachi was gone.

Sasuke skidded to a stop in a small clearing and gritted his teeth in anger. "WHERE ARE YOU?!" He screamed in desperation. Little did he know that as soon as he had entered the clearing he had become trapped in a genjutsu.

 

* * *

Naruto, TenTen, and Lee had heard Sasuke's yell and knew he had lost sight of his quarry. They stopped running once they caught sight of him and Naruto turned to the others. "I'd better go alone. I'm the only one he listens to when he's like this."

TenTen and Lee frowned but nodded in agreement. The instant Naruto was gone both of them were knocked unconscious by Itachi's unseen hands.

Naruto walked into the clearing. "Sasuke?"

Sasuke turned around and instantly, there was a glare of killing intent etched across his face.

Confusion ran rampant through Naruto's mind. What was going on? "Nii-san?"

Sasuke charged up chidori. "I'LL KILL YOU!" With that, he dove forward.

Naruto barely managed to dodge in time, diving to the right and executing a sideways aerial flip before landing six feet away. He jumped up and went into a defensive stance. "SASUKE, WHAT THE HELL?!"

But Sasuke didn't hear a single one of his younger brother's words—for the one he saw in front of him...was Itachi. When Naruto had yelled for an explanation Sasuke only heard Itachi's usual taunts. He knew he had maybe one more shot with Chidori—two at most.  _"I'll have to try and wear him down."_

Naruto's heart raced in panic. Not only did he have no idea why Sasuke was attacking him, but there was a good chance Itachi was nearby, which meant they didn't have time for this. "Sasuke, STOP! It's me!" he insisted loudly as he hopped backward to avoid a punch.

Snake, Tiger, Dog, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger. "Katon: Housenka no Jutsu! (A/N- Flame Type: Mythical Fire Flower Technique)" Sasuke held his hand to his mouth and shot out several small fireballs at Naruto.

Naruto flipped, rolled and jumped to get out of their way. When he looked up from dodging the last one he wasn't surprised to see the sharingan in Sasuke's eyes.  _"Shit!"_  he dodged a volley of punches and ran up a tree.  _"What do I do?! I can't go all out against him cause it's pretty obvious he doesn't know it's me. But who_ _ **does**_ _he think I am?"_  He suddenly noticed flames licking their way up the tree he was in. He jumped down and turned to face his brother again, and that's when he noticed it—his eyes. The look in Sasuke's eyes was a photograph of the anger and hatred that had been directed at Itachi when they'd met at the hotel almost two years ago.  _"He thinks I'm Itachi."_  If Sasuke truly thought he was Itachi then nothing he said would make a difference. He was going to have to bring him down somehow—but how to do it without one or both of them being seriously injured was going to be a problem.

Sasuke was getting irritated.  _"What's going on? He doesn't usually just dodge like this,"_  His thought was suddenly countered as he dodged a kick to his side.

Naruto threw a punch toward Sasuke's head. Sasuke blocked it with his right forearm and used the opportunity to sweep Naruto's legs. Naruto rolled out of the way as Sasuke's fist came crashing down into the dirt his head used to be. Naruto half rolled/ half flipped as he swung his lower torso around in a circle, grabbed Sasuke by the legs and used the momentum to fling him aside, giving Naruto time to scramble to his feet.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!"

Six Narutos surrounded Sasuke. But instead of freaking out at the number of 'Itachis' Sasuke now saw, his mind was spinning with confusion.  _"There's no way in hell I should've been able to knock his legs out from under him so easily. Something's not adding up."_  His eyes suddenly lit up with realization. A realization he would've come to much earlier had he not been so blinded by rage.  _"Could this be a genjutsu?"_

Naruto watched curiously as Sasuke paused.  _"Did he figure it out?"_

" _If this_ _ **is**_ _Itachi's genjutsu there's no way I'll break it without outside help."_ Sasuke looked over at the fake Itachi. _"And who the heck am I fighting?"_

" _I need to find a way to let him know I'm me,"_  Naruto thought. Suddenly an idea dawned on him.  _"I got it!"_

Sasuke eyed his opponent warily as said opponent held out an open palm and the rasengan materialized on his hand.  _"Rasengan?!"_  He stared for a moment as he looked more closely at the sphere—it was rainbow colored. "Naruto?"

Naruto smiled and gave him a thumbs-up.

Sasuke sighed in relief. "Do you know how to dispel genjutsu?"

Naruto shook his head.

From the other side of the trees, Itachi frowned in disappointment. As he dispelled the genjutsu he sensed several powerful chakra signatures moving towards him and made a short sigh. It would be too difficult to obtain his target now. Especially if the two remaining sannin were in the group of fighters.  _"Another time."_  He vanished into the night, leaving Lee and TenTen sleeping at the foot of a tree.

Sasuke blinked as he saw Naruto return to his true form. "He must have left," he said with an angry glare. "Naruto, I'm sorry."

Naruto smiled. "Hey, don't worry about it. It's not like you knew who I was."

Sasuke smiled a little. "Right."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Lee! TenTen!"

"What about them?" Sasuke asked with concern.

"I left them at the edge of the clearing!"

Just then, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Hinata, and two anbu landed in the clearing. "What happened?" Hinata asked quickly.

"We'll tell you later!" Sasuke answered. "Right now you need to use your byakugan to search for TenTen!" he said with urgency.

Naruto looked at Sasuke. "And Lee," he added.

Sasuke looked a little taken aback that he had forgotten about Lee and quickly corrected himself. "Right."

"Byakugan!" Hinata's eyes scanned the forest until her gaze came to rest on two figures on the ground not far from their position. "Over there!" she said before running off in the indicated direction.

As soon as they got to Lee and TenTen, Sasuke ran over and checked TenTen's vitals, then Lee's. "They're alright. Just knocked out," he said as he breathed a sigh of relief.

Tsunade nodded in approval. "Okay. Now that we've found them let's get them home." She looked at Naruto and Sasuke. "You two can give me your report on the way."

Jiraiya picked up Lee. Tsunade was about to pick up TenTen but Sasuke beat her to it. She looked at him curiously for a moment, then led the way as everyone headed back into the village.


	15. Lighting the Darkness

Tsunade eyed the four genin in front of her with a stern expression. "So to sum it up—Itachi used a bunshin to lure you," she glared at Sasuke in disappointment, "out of the village and you followed without informing a single other shinobi which wound up endangering you, Naruto, Lee, and TenTen. Do I have it about right?"

Sasuke sighed angrily at himself. "Yes," he answered through gritted teeth.

Tsunade drummed her fingers on her desktop. "Alright then. Naruto, TenTen, and Lee—you three may go home. Sasuke, please stay behind."

Sasuke nodded sullenly while the others rose from their seats. The scraping of the chairs was a sharp reminder that he was about to be left alone with one of the scariest women in existence—not something he was looking forward to.

"Good luck," Naruto said as he looked at Sasuke with a slight wince of sympathy.

They filed out one by one. TenTen was the last to go, shooting Sasuke a glance just before disappearing through the doorway.

As soon as the door clicked shut Tsunade sighed heavily. "You are very lucky Genma happened to see you leave the village. I know that your hatred toward your brother is very strong, but that doesn't excuse what you did tonight. I'm removing you from active duty for two weeks. Hopefully, this will give you time to reflect on your stupidity."

Sasuke gritted his teeth for a second before answering. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."

"I gave you your life back after you betrayed our village and nearly killed Naruto...Please don't waste my generosity," Tsunade requested solemnly.

"I'm sorry, Tsunade-sama but, I don't make promises...that I can't keep," Sasuke said sadly.

Tsunade sighed in disappointment. "You're dismissed."

Sasuke simply got out of his seat and left the room.

 

* * *

Naruto tossed and turned under his sheets, the beginnings of sweat forming on his forehead. In his dreams, he was in a dark cavern and the sounds of screaming were echoing all around him. He stood in the cavern center, desperately trying to find the source of the screams when a small portion of the area lit up.

In this light was Kikyo—on her chair, in her bonds, and screaming in a way that pierced one's very soul with horror. Tsunade knelt on one side of the circle—performing the jutsu Naruto had asked her to. And on the far wall, he saw himself watching the entire scene with relish—Drinking in every sound the terrified Kikyo made.

As Naruto watched himself he began to feel sick to his stomach. Was that really him? Was he really this person who wanted another living human's torture to go on forever? It was as if everything he was, everything he had worked so hard to achieve, was vanishing in that twisted expression. Tears formed as his voice found his throat. "NO! No stop it!" he screamed. But it did no good, for this was not a fantasy and could not be changed.

Naruto woke up with a start. He clutched his hand over his heart and his breath came in short gasps as the tears began to fall. "What kind of monster am I?" he asked himself in a voice barely above a whisper. He stood up and headed for his mother's room.

 

* * *

Tsunade turned her head to glare at the door that the knocking was coming from. "This'd better be important or I'm going to kill someone," she muttered under her breath. She opened the door to find her son standing before her—pale as a sheet with cheeks moist from crying. She was instantly concerned. "Naruto—what's wrong?"

"Kaa-san, can that jutsu be reversed?" Naruto asked with wild desperation in his eyes.

Instead of shaking her head and saying 'no', Tsunade sighed and smiled, looking greatly relieved. "I was waiting for you to ask that."

Naruto just stared at her for a moment. "You were?" he asked quietly.

Tsunade nodded. "When you asked for that sentence I was shocked, but I realized that you asked for it because you were hurting. I only agreed to it because I knew you wouldn't leave her like that."

Surprise swept over Naruto's face. "You did?"

Tsunade nodded. "I knew because," she bent down a little and placed a hand on his chest over his heart, "the Naruto in here, could never become that boy I saw in the cave."

The tiniest of smiles tugged at one corner of his mouth as another tear made its way down his face. "I...I'm not a monster?"

Tsunade's smile widened slightly and she embraced her son. "No...never..."

 

* * *

Kikyo blinked her eyes in surprise when her hand actually moved. She stared down at it for a moment before looking at the blonde haired boy in front of her with a suspicious glare. "Why?"

Naruto simply gave Kikyo a superior glare. "Because...I'm better than you." With that, he walked away, not even bothering to look behind him.

A stunned Kikyo did nothing but stare after him as the nurse brought her clothes.

Tsunade smiled in satisfaction before turning to Kikyo. "As soon as you're dressed the jounin waiting outside will transfer you to prison—where you'll spend the rest of your life." When Kikyo didn't respond Tsunade left.

 

* * *

Tsunade caught up with Naruto just as he had exited the hospital. "I'm proud of you," she said as she fell in step with him.

Naruto smiled. "Thanks, Kaa-san."

"Tomoyo said you had a little trouble with your sealing lessons yesterday," Tsunade said with a slight chuckle.

Naruto's smile quickly turned into a pout. "Yeah."

"She also told me why," Tsunade said with a cocked eyebrow as they turned onto the main street.

Naruto turned a little red in response.

"It's not a problem, brat. We just have to work on your handwriting," Tsunade said with a reassuring smile.

"Yeah," Naruto said dejectedly as he kicked at the dirt.

"You know what? Hinata has wonderful handwriting. I'm sure she'd be able to help," Tsunade offered.

Naruto's eyes widened. "That's a great idea! I'll go find her now!" He ran off down the road. "Thanks, Baa-chan!" he called back over his shoulder.

Tsunade winced a bit at her old nickname finding life again but quickly smiled. "You can do it, brat," she whispered.

 

* * *

TenTen was on her way to Sasuke's apartment. She'd planned to offer to train with him in an effort to lift his spirits. When she got to his building she lept up the wooden balconies until she reached the covered walkway which led to his door, knocked on the door, and waited. After a moment she tried again. When no one answered she pouted a bit in disappointment. "I guess he's not home."

"TenTen?"

TenTen spun around to find Sasuke standing behind her with a bag of groceries. "There you are," she said with a smile. "You want a rematch?"

Sasuke seemed to think on the matter for a moment. "Not really in the mood. Besides, I need to put this stuff away," he said as he put his key in the lock.

"Well then I'll help," TenTen replied cheerfully as the lock clicked.

Sasuke cocked an eyebrow. "I think I can put away one bag of groceries by myself," he said as he turned the doorknob.

TenTen sighed dejectedly. "Okay. See ya around then," she said with a half-hearted smile. She turned around and jumped down to ground level.

Sasuke's face was a wall of regret as he watched her go. "See you around," he said quietly.

 

* * *

Naruto curled his hand into a loose fist, raised it, lowered it, and raised it again. He was standing at the gate to the Hyuuga complex—fighting the urge to run. He knew Hinata's father hated him and would not take kindly to him just showing up on his doorstep out of the blue. Finally, he drummed up his courage and knocked. For a moment nothing happened, but then the gates creaked open.

A male Hyuuga jounin was standing in the now open gateway. The disdain he had for Naruto was clearly written on his face. "Yes?"

Naruto cleared his throat. "I'm—um...here to see Hinata-chan," he said nervously.

The jounin sighed and pushed his glasses further onto his nose. "Wait here." He turned around and shut the gate, appearing about ten minutes later looking even more unhappy than he had earlier. "This way please." He headed toward the main house and Naruto followed.

The glances Naruto received from the residents of the compound varied more than he would've thought. Some were indifferent, only glancing upwards to see who had come in. Some gave him the same disdainful glare he'd gotten at the gate. A few of them, though, actually smiled when he passed.  _"At least they don't_ _ **all**_ _hate me,"_  he thought with some hope.

They turned down a hallway and stopped in front of a large door. "I will announce you. Stay there." After a moment the jounin returned. "He'll see you now."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks." Suddenly something dawned on him. "Wait... _he_?"

The jounin smirked. "Yes. Hiashi-sama wishes to speak with you."

Naruto's stomach suddenly felt like a block of cement. What was going on? He was supposed to see Hinata, not face down the man who'd be happy to see his throat slit. He wanted nothing more than to run, but something told him that leaving would be the wrong thing to do so he gulped and entered the room.

The room was fairly impressive. It looked as though at least fifteen people could occupy it comfortably. Small bamboo chutes sat in ornate pots in each of the four corners, a large Japanese lantern-style light hung in the center of the ceiling and provided most of the light. The slack was taken up by wall lamps on the left and right walls.

Hiashi was sitting on a large pillow on one side of a short table with a beautiful Japanese crane carved in the center. He had a short stack of what looked like paperwork in front of him. He glanced up with an indifferent look and waved a hand at the pillow opposite his position. "Please, sit," he said as he finished scanning the top paper and put it to one side. He sighed, folded his arms and looked over the obviously nervous boy.

Naruto's heart hammered in his chest. What if he was told he couldn't see Hinata anymore? The very thought made him sick to his stomach, but then he remembered his mother would step in if it came to that so he calmed down a little.  _"Will he just_ _ **say**_ _something already?"_

After what seemed like an eternity, Hiashi spoke. "I don't see it," he said finally.

"S-see what?" Naruto asked quietly.

"Whatever it is my daughter sees in you. I will allow the relationship to continue, however," Hiashi said matter-of-factly.

Naruto visibly relaxed a bit.

"When I first discovered you two were a couple I was very angry. I wanted you separated, but of course, your mother wouldn't allow it," Hiashi said a small amount of venom in his voice. "I asked Hinata why you were so important to her. After hearing her explanation I decided it would be interesting to see where the path she had chosen was headed." He cleared his throat and paused for a moment—seemingly collecting his thoughts.

"Although I still don't see what she does, I will say this." He unfolded his arms, interlaced his fingers and placed his hands on the table top. "Ever since she has been with you, a change has come over her. She is bolder than she used to be, she's nearly stopped stuttering in my presence, and she has been improving drastically in her training. Before ten months ago I never would have thought kaiten was possible for her, but now she is nearly as skilled in it as Neji. I had spent many years despising you so this is difficult for me to say, but...you have my blessing, to continue courting her."

Naruto's mouth fell open in an 'O' of shock.

"You've instilled in her the confidence...that I was not able to give her." Silence. "And for that, I thank you," Hiashi finished with a barely noticeable smile.

Naruto finally found his voice. "I...I don't know what to say."

Hiashi sighed and his mouth curled into a bemused smile. "Perhaps you could say that you will at least attempt to act a little more refined when you are with my daughter in public?"

Naruto winced. "I'm not very good at that, but I can give it a shot."

Hiashi nodded. "That is all I ask. You may see Hinata now."

Naruto was about to simply thank Hiashi and then leave, but then he remembered his promise to attempt refinement and bowed. "Arigato, Hiashi-sama," he said with as much respect as he could muster.

Hiashi's eyebrows rose in surprise, but then he smiled. "You are welcome."

 

* * *

Hanabi poked her head into her sister's room. "Nee-san, Naruto is here to see you."

Hinata looked up from her book and smiled. "Thank you, Hanabi-chan."

Hanabi smiled and left the room.

Naruto walked in. "Hey, Hina-chan," he said with a big grin.

"Hi. I can't believe father actually let you in," Hinata said with a pleased expression. She hugged Naruto and they sat down on some floor pillows.

"Well, I'm not exactly by myself. There's a guard outside to make sure I...don't do anything perverted," Naruto said with a blush.

Hinata blushed a bit as well. "W-well there isn't much to do in my room besides read."

Naruto looked around the room a bit. The walls were mostly white, with the exception of a bamboo forest painted on the wall containing the window. Her bed was tucked in one corner, was decorated in mostly decorated in purples and blues and it had a bright blue nightstand next to it. On the wall opposite the bed was a green bookcase with a stuffed panda bear sitting on top. Most of the books inside were at least two inches thick. He winced a little. He hated long books. They were hard for him to get through.

"Well, what I came to ask you about isn't all that exciting anyway," Naruto said as he scratched the back of his neck.

Hinata smiled. "What is it?"

"I-ah...I need some help with my handwriting," Naruto answered with a blush.

Hinata blinked. "Your handwriting?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah. I was practicing sealing things into scrolls and...my handwriting was so bad that it didn't work."

Hinata's eyes widened. "Oh..."

"So...can you help me?" Naruto asked.

Hinata smiled. "Hai."

"Great!"

"Just let me get some paper," Hinata said as she stood and walked over to her nightstandbb30. She opened the drawer and pulled out a short stack of paper, then grabbed a brush and a bottle of ink from their spot on top. Lastly, she pulled a lap desk from under her bed, put it on Naruto's lap and laid the writing supplies on top of that.

"Okay," Hinata said as she sat down next to Naruto, "just write something so I can see what needs to be done," she asked sweetly.

"Right." Naruto took the brush and began writing. After about two minutes he showed her his work.

Hinata took the paper from him. "Okay, let's see..." Her eyebrows rose a bit in shock and her expression turned apologetic. "I...can't read it," she said with a wince.

Naruto's face fell.

"Wh...What did it say?" Hinata asked softly.

Naruto sighed sadly. "It says 'Hinata is beautiful'."

Hinata smiled and blushed. "Th...Thank you." She looked at the paper again.

Naruto let out a small snort. "I guess I'm not very good at teaching myself."

Now Hinata looked confused. "Teaching yourself?"

"Yeah. I had to teach myself how to read and write," Naruto explained.

Hinata frowned. "But what about the academy? They teach reading in the entry grade."

Naruto closed his eyes. "I didn't always have Iruka-sensei. My first teachers made me stand outside during lessons. Said they didn't think I even had the right to be there. Of course, back then I didn't know why they said those things," he said with a shrug. "I just thought they hated me cause I'm an orphan and..." he stopped when he saw Hinata's face, which was full of sadness. "Gomen...I didn't mean to make you sad," he said softly.

Hinata suddenly wrapped her arms around him. "So much," she said in a whisper. "Why did you have to go through so much?"

Naruto gave her a squeeze. "I'm okay now. Don't worry."

Hinata released him and sat straight again. "But...how did you learn without any help?"

Naruto laughed a little. "When I was in my third year I skipped classes sometimes. I snuck outside and listened under the window of the first year class. It was hard cause I had to sneak looks at the chalkboard without getting caught," he said with a smile of pride.

Hinata stared at the writing for another moment. "Well, that would explain why you still write in hiragana. At least," she turned the paper on its side, "I think it's hiragana."

Naruto winced.

Hinata's eyes suddenly went wide. "If you didn't even start teaching yourself until you were in third year then that means..."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah," He swallowed, "I couldn't read till I was almost nine."

Realization swept over Hinata's face like a wave. "S...So that's why your grades were so bad."

Naruto nodded again. "Yeah, but like I said, I'm okay now."

Hinata's expression became determined and she gave him a quick kiss. "Let's get started."

 

 


	16. The Apology

Ten days later Naruto carefully pulled his brush downward to make the final stroke on the words he was writing. He held it out a bit, smiled in satisfaction, and handed it to Hinata.

Hinata looked over the hiragana and smiled. "It looks wonderful, Naruto-kun!"

Naruto smiled widely.

Hinata blushed. "A-And thank you." The words on the paper read 'Hina-chan is the prettiest sensei ever'.

Naruto smiled and looked at the small analog clock on Hinata's wall. "I better go. I wanna see if Tomoyo-chan is up for some training before it gets too dark." He leaned over, gave Hinata a short kiss and stood up.

Hinata nodded and smiled. "Okay. Good luck."

"Thanks." Naruto gave her a foxy grin and left.

 

* * *

Sasuke had a scowl on his face as he strolled along the Konoha streets. He absolutely hated being off the mission list. The only thing that kept him from going completely stir crazy was sparring with his friends.

He noticed Naruto coming out of sweets shop called The Sugar Rice Ball with at least ten sticks of dango in his right hand.  _"Damn, he eats a lot."_  He changed his direction toward his brother. "Oi, Naruto."

Naruto smiled. "Hey, Sasuke." He held out a dango stick. "Want one?"

Sasuke made a face. "Hell no. That sugary crap is for little kids."

Naruto's face scrunched into a frown. "You callin' me a kid?!"

Sasuke smirked. "Don't look at me. I didn't make you eat those."

Naruto's frown deepened. He shoved his dango back into his shopping bag. "Alright. Now it's on!"

"Ha! Like you can catch me," Sasuke taunted before bolting off in the direction of the training fields.

"Come back here you asshole!" Naruto shouted at Sasuke as he took off after him.

 

* * *

Sakura looked casually around the weapons shop that TenTen had dragged her to. It wasn't that she didn't like weapons, but drooling over what she did not have the money nor the intention to purchase felt pointless to her.

TenTen grabbed Sakura by the arm and pulled her over to a case of glimmering short swords. "Aren't they beautiful?!" she swooned.

Sakura looked over the swords, her gaze finally falling on the price tags which made her choke a little. "Yeah, but there's no way I'd ever afford them. Besides, I'm more hand to hand than weapons."

TenTen looked shocked. "How can you not drool over these?!"

Sakura was about to respond when a shrill squeal made her cover her ears.

TenTen was staring at a pair of white swords. "They have them! They actually have them!" She squeaked again. "Look at the craftsmanship!-the ceramic blades, the silver-plated handles, the ruby dragon hand guards!"

The clerk walked over to TenTen. "Aren't they gorgeous? We just got them in today," she said with a smile.

"I've wanted them ever since I saw them in the Cutting Edge catalog!" A dejected expression made its way onto TenTen's face. "I wish they weren't so expensive."

Suddenly TenTen noticed Sasuke and Naruto blow past the shop. "What the...?"

Sakura looked out the window but she had already missed them. "What is it?"

Tenten frowned. "Not again." With that, she bolted out the door.

Sakura had no idea what was going on but she followed anyway.

 

* * *

Tenten and Sakura skidded to a halt when they caught sight of their quarry. They had wound up on the edge of the training ground Kakashi had taken team seven to when they had first become genin.

Naruto took a running leap into Sasuke's back. Sasuke fell forward, hit the ground and skidded for several feet. Naruto looked triumphant for a second before 'Sasuke' turned into a log. "Shit!" he cursed right before a fist entered his peripheral vision and connected with his face.

Sasuke smirked. "Heh. Even with your fancy new chakra, you suck," he taunted smugly.

Tenten sighed in relief.

Sakura gave her a look. "So are you going to tell me why we chased after those two idiots?"

"I thought it was the same thing as the whole Itachi mess ten days ago," Tenten explained as Naruto and Sasuke threw several volleys of punches and kicks at each other.

Sakura chuckled. "Oh." Her eyes widened as over one hundred Narutos suddenly surrounded her former crush. "No matter how many times I see that, it's still amazing," she said in awe. "Not that I'd ever tell him that," she added quickly.

Tenten watch as Sasuke destroyed several bunshins. She looked back at Sakura. "Why not?"

Sakura looked a little stunned. "Because his ego is already ridiculous," she said with a laugh.

Tenten laughed as well. "You wanna join 'em?"

Sakura shook her head. "No. It's almost time for dinner. My mom will be mad if I'm late."

"Suit yourself," Tenten replied with a shrug.

"Bye," Sakura said she walked away.

"Later." Once Sakura was out of sight TenTen ran towards the boys.

 

Naruto flipped sideways over Sasuke's head and hit him in the chest with a spin kick. Sasuke threw a back-fisted punch at Naruto's head but he dodged it and punched at Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke blocked the punch with his forearm and jumped backward. He was getting extremely frustrated. Naruto's taijutsu was now nearly as good as his. He was even starting to wonder if he would win this round simply because he knew his brother was such a stamina freak.  _"Okay, time to show him who the genius is,"_  he thought smugly. "Sharingan!"

Naruto smirked. "So that's how you wanna play it, huh?" He directed chakra to his eyes. "Tamagan!"

Tenten stopped short in her run. Now that they were using doujutsu she didn't have a chance in hell of managing to hold her own. In defeat, she sat down and watched the fight.

Out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke noticed Tenten sitting on the far edge of the field. For some reason, he couldn't place he  _really_  didn't want to lose in front of her. He jumped in the air and dove for Naruto with his fist outstretched.

Naruto grabbed Sasuke's fist and prepared to toss him aside but Sasuke used the leverage offered by Naruto's hand as a push off point and kicked him in the stomach with both feet.

Rolling quickly to one side, Naruto barely managed to avoid Sasuke's fist—which collided with the dirt—and pulled off a short heel kick to Sasuke's shin—bringing him down. Both boys leaped back to their feet and slide into their stances. Just then a voice called out from the road.

"Oi! Naruto!" Tomoyo called with her arms folded and a look of irritation on her face. "I thought you were just gonna get a snack?!"

Naruto pointed at Sasuke. "Don't look at me! This teme started it!"

"I didn't force you to come after me," Sasuke retorted with a smirk.

Tomoyo sighed. "Are you gonna train tonight or what?"

Naruto gave his cousin a sheepish grin. "Hai." He turned to Sasuke. "You're lucky she came along. I definitely would've won," he taunted.

"In your dreams, dobe," Sasuke retorted.

Naruto laughed. "Ja."

"Ja," Sasuke replied with a smirk.

Naruto walked away and Tenten trotted over to Sasuke. "Nice moves," she said cheerfully. She could have sworn she saw a tinge of pink on the Uchiha's cheeks but it was gone so fast that she chalked it up to her imagination running away with her.

"Thanks," Sasuke replied. He walked over to the river and sat down on the bank. Tenten followed suit.

After a moment of silence, Tenten spoke. "Do you ever think about your future after you kill Itachi?"

Sasuke looked at her in surprise and then stared up into the sky. "Not really. I mean, assuming I manage to kill him without killing myself my only other goal is to revive my clan."

"Hmm." Tenten looked at the sky also. "Which is more important to you?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, although he didn't look at her. "I never really thought about it."

Tenten frowned. "Well, how are you gonna revive your clan if you're dead?"

Sasuke snorted. "I can't, obviously."

Tenten put her arms behind her head allowed her body to fall backward onto the soft dirt. "Well...I hope you don't die."

Sasuke's eyes fluttered in surprise before his expression fell into a smile. "Thanks." He laid on the ground and the two stared up at the sky together.

 

* * *

Naruto and Tomoyo sat, once again, in the middle of the Namikaze training field, which was now bordered on three sides by walls made from the trees Tomoyo had taken down earlier.

Tomoyo handed Naruto a brush and a scroll. "Okay kiddo," she said with a grin, "Let's see what you got."

Naruto took the writing implements and set about the task at hand. When he was done painting the symbols—which took much less time than before—he placed the rock in the center of the sealing circle. "Fuuin no jutsu!" When the smoke cleared the rock was gone. Naruto's eyes lit up like stars. "Yatta!"

Tomoyo grinned. "Yes!" she exclaimed, accentuating it by clenching her fist in front of her. "Great job, Naruto. I knew you could do it." She took another blank scroll from her bag. "Okay. Now, why don't we try sealing a weapon or two for you to use on the field."

Naruto took the scroll and stared at it for a moment before his smile widened. "Nah. I got a better idea."

 

* * *

Takaifuujin, Kazekage of Suna, looked over the letter he had just completed writing. It had been difficult to put those words on paper, but he knew it had been the right thing to do. He folded the letter, put it in a small leather pouch and tied it to the leg of the falcon waiting on his desk—then he stood, walked over to the window and released the raptor. "Quick speed, my friend. Fly to the boy...I have wronged."

 

* * *

Tsunade looked up curiously when she heard a tapping on her window and was surprised to see a messenger bird from Suna. She opened the window, took the small pouch off its leg and gave the bird a bit of fish. As the bird flew away she took the letter out—unfolding it as she sat in her chair. Her eyebrows raised as she read the contents and her expression fell into a satisfied smile. "Shikamaru," she called out.

The boy in question opened the door to the office. "Hai, Tsunade-sama?"

"Find Naruto for me please," Tsunade asked pleasantly.

Shikamaru nodded. "Hai, Tsunade-sama."

 

* * *

Naruto was walking home when he noticed Shikamaru coming towards him. "Yo, Shikamaru," he said cheerfully.

"There you are." Shikamaru jogged over to his target. "Tsunade-sama wants to talk to you," he said plainly.

"About what?"

Shikamaru shrugged. "She didn't say."

Naruto frowned at the lack of forthcoming information. "Hmm. Okay, let's go."

 

* * *

A knock sounded on Tsunade's door. "Yes?"

Shikamaru's head appeared once again. "Naruto's here."

Tsunade nodded in appreciation. "Send him on in."

Shikamaru nodded and left.

Naruto walked through the door and plopped himself down in the chair opposite his mother. "What's up?"

Tsunade picked up the letter off her desk and handed it to her son. "This," she replied with a knowing smile.

Naruto's face crinkled into a questioning look as he took the letter. "Who's it from?"

"The Kazekage."

A nervous lump instantly solidified itself in Naruto's throat. What could he possibly want? He lifted the letter to his eyes and began to read.

_Dear Naruto,_

_This is not easy to say, but I made a serious error while you were here. I let you believe you were responsible for my daughter's death._  Naruto's expression became confused.  _Yes, you accidentally delivered the final blow, but the bulk of the blame is solely on my shoulders._

_I loved my daughter very much, but I was not a good father. After her mother died I spent very little time with her and when I did our conversations consisted mainly of her duties as the daughter of a Kazekage._

_One day a boy around her age came to Suna. He and Katsura began to spend a lot of time together and I did not approve. I forbade her to see him...and that was my final mistake as her father, for she was gone the next morning. I had failed to see that her spirit was withering here. That boy offered her an escape and she took it._

_So, you see, her death is my fault, not yours. I was so grief-stricken when I learned what happened in Ganshou that my mind needed someone to blame other than myself. You, who were innocent of the crime_ _**I** _ _had committed, were, unfortunately, the easiest one to criminalize. I have made a grievous error and for this transgression, I deeply apologize._

_I may, however, have a chance to make it up to you. I have, in my possession, something that belongs to your family. It is a scroll that was stolen from Konoha some time ago. I knew you were a Namikaze from the moment I saw you but decided against saying so lest it bring about uncomfortable questions. I am sending Gaara, Temari and Kankuro to deliver the scroll to you._

_I hope that one day you can forgive me for my mistakes._

_Sincerely,_

_Takaifuujin, Kazekage of Suna_

Naruto's face was a mixture of relief, understanding, and happiness.

Tsunade broke the silence. "Feel better?" she asked kindly.

Naruto nodded and very quickly began to feel the excitement growing in his chest. He grinned widely. "Yeah...and I can't wait for them to get here!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The name of Naruto's doujutsu is "Tamagan" Which means "Soul Eyes".


	17. Inheritance

Hinata found Naruto staring at Konoha's front gate. "Naruto-kun?"

Naruto smiled and hugged her. "Hey, Hina-chan!"

"Would you like to take a walk?" Hinata asked cheerfully.

Naruto looked back at the gate uneasily. "Ummm."

"I'm sure Tsunade-sama will send for you when they get here," Hinata offered.

Naruto glanced back at the gate once again before replying. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Let's go," he said, offering her his hand.

Hinata took it gladly and the two set off. She looked at his hair as they walked. The day was bright and warm, as it often was in mid-July, and the sun shone on Naruto's golden locks, giving them a soft, almost ethereal glow. She just couldn't fathom how she'd managed to have even the slightest chance with such a beautiful boy, never mind become his girlfriend. She sighed happily and rested her head on his shoulder.

Naruto felt the slight pressure on his shoulder and smiled. "I love you," he said as he 'hugged' her head with his own.

"I love you too," Hinata replied.

They walked slowly, reveling in the beauty of the day. Cool breezes brought with them the scent of fresh cut flowers from Ino's shop. When they reached the center of the village Naruto suddenly got an idea. "Hey! You wanna see the Namikaze complex?"

Hinata removed her head from Naruto's shoulder and smiled. "I'd love to!"

Naruto grinned but it quickly fell away as he saw Shikamaru heading toward them.  _"Aww man."_

"Yo, Naruto. Tsu..." Shikamaru began.

"Yeah yeah. Baa-chan wants to see me," Naruto grumbled.

Shikamaru simply cocked an eyebrow in response.

Naruto sighed and turned to Hinata. "Sorry, Hina-chan. Looks like we'll hafta go later."

Hinata smiled. "It's okay." She gave him a quick kiss. "I can wait."

Naruto hugged her. "I'll see you soon."

Hinata nodded. "Nhm!"

Naruto frowned as he watched her walk away, then turned to Shikamaru. "Let's go," he groaned.

Shikamaru folded his arms. "I'm just the messenger, Naruto. If you want to complain, complain to Tsunade-sama when we get there," he said in a bored and slightly irritated tone.

Naruto rolled his eyes and began walking as Shikamaru took the lead. "Yeah yeah."

Shikamaru sighed. _"How troublesome."_

 

* * *

Naruto walked into his mother's office to find Sasuke and Sakura already seated in two of the three extra chairs in the room. He looked at them curiously and sat down.

"Okay. Now that my son has seen fit to grace us with his presence," Tsunade said with a chuckle, "I have some news for you three."

"News?" Sakura parroted.

"Well—you all know that the chuunin exams will be coming up in just over two months," Tsunade replied.

The teenagers nodded.

"I've decided that it's finally time for your second try," Tsunade said with a huge smile.

Naruto and Sakura exchanged looks of excitement while Sasuke sat there with a satisfied smirk, which was about as close to excitement as he got.

"The other teams from your graduating class will be taking the exams along with you—And so will Gai's team." Her smile seemed to change a little. "There is one thing you need to be aware of though. These exams will be taking place in Amegakure (a/n- Hidden Village of Rain)."

Looks of shock were instantly on the faces of team seven. Sakura found her voice first. "But, Tsunade-sama—Ame isn't one of the five great shinobi nations."

"And they're really unstable!" Naruto added.

Sakura looked at Naruto in surprise.

"What? You're not the only one who reads," Naruto countered indignantly.

Tsunade cleared her throat to bring her young soldiers back into focus. "It's a very central location, which makes it more convenient and Ame has some very interesting terrain. We thought it would be a good change of pace," she explained. "And besides, since we don't know much about Ame this is a good chance for some information gathering," she finished with a sly smile.

Sakura smiled in acceptance of the explanation, Sasuke looked contemplative, and Naruto looked completely unconvinced.

"Now, I expect nothing but the best from you three. Don't disappoint me," Tsunade said with a smile.

All three teens nodded and Naruto gave a loud, "Osu!" with a salute.

Tsunade chuckled. "Alright then—get outta here," she said with a short toss of her head in the direction of the door, "I got work to do."

 

* * *

Tomoyo sat on the playground swings thinking as she swung lazily back and forth. The soft wind should have been soothing but it only seemed to accentuate the sadness she felt. She didn't know how long she'd been there—she hadn't kept track. Even when the shadows had become long and reaching, she didn't stir...until a gentle hand slid over her shoulder.

"I thought I'd find you here," Kakashi said softly. He crouched down next to her. "Why did you run off so suddenly?"

Tomoyo's head sank a bit lower in response and it was then that Kakashi noticed the piece of paper crumpled in between her hand and the swing chain. "Oh..." He sat down and his head sunk a little as well, "...I see."

Tomoyo's soft, tear-choked voice broke the anguished silence. "There's no one." Silence. "There's no family to put on this list." She crunched the paper even more tightly so that her knuckles turned white. "They're all gone," she said as fresh tears began to fall. "My cousins, my sister, my parents, grandparents...all gone."

Kakashi looked at her. "Not all gone," he said gently. "There's a blonde boy who lives not far from here who would disagree."

"I love Naruto very much—and I'm grateful to have him—but he's not one of the faces I always imagined would see my wedding day. My father won't be there to give me away. My mom won't be there fuss over me, and fix my hair. Minato won't be there to tease me about finally acting like an adult. Noriko won't be there to...to..." she began crying loudly.

Kakashi put his arms around her. The paper dropped away from her hand and she collapsed into him.

 

* * *

"Are you going to simply stare at us all day or are you going to take us to the Hokage?" Gaara asked of the chuunin in front of him. He was trying his best to be patient. He knew if he was going to be Kazekage one day it was a skill he would need, but this woman was testing his last nerve. Before he met Naruto he had delighted in the fact that people were afraid of him on sight, but now it irritated him to no end.

The chuunin swallowed her fear of the young man in front of her and spoke. "Of course. Follow me please."

The orange light of the setting sun illuminated their path as Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro followed the chuunin to the Hokage tower.

Hinata stared in wonder at Naruto's family home. "It's wonderful, Naruto-kun!" She didn't know what it was, but something about the place spoke to her. She felt as if it was rich with life just waiting to be uncovered.

Naruto stepped up beside her. "Sorry, we won't be able to look at it for long."

Hinata smiled at him. "That's alright. I still got to see it today." She walked over to the fountain. "I can't wait to see what it looks like when you're done fixing it."

"Yeah, well, that'll have ta wait till I make jounin. I just don't make enough money right now," Naruto said with a rueful smile.

"If it's about getting someone to do the work then I'll help," Hinata offered.

"Thanks, Hina-chan." Naruto looked around for a moment. "I guess we could at least do the cleaning parts. We'd definitely need more people though."

"Naruto," Tomoyo's voice sounded behind them.

"What is it?" Naruto asked with a smile.

"Tsunade-sama needs to see you," Tomoyo explained.

Naruto's jaw dropped. "A-gain?!" he asked incredulously.

Tomoyo giggled. "Don't worry. You'll be happy about this visit," she said with a wink.

 

* * *

Naruto grinned when he saw the Suna siblings. "Hey, Gaara!" he said loudly.

The boy in question covered his ears and winced at the volume coming from his friend. Once he thought the danger of eardrum destruction was passed he uncovered his ears and spoke. "Hello, Naruto," he said with an attempt at a smile.

Naruto put his hands on the desk, push upwards and swiveled himself around so that his butt landed on the front edge of Tsunade's desk—scattering a few papers as he did so.

Tsunade's face fell into a deep frown. "Oi," she said in a low tone as she folded her arms.

Naruto was too excited to notice. He leaned forward towards the Suna siblings. "So! So! Where is it?"

Tsunade's eyebrow began to twitch and her arms unfolded, leaving her right hand free to form a fist. "Oi..."

"What kind of scroll is it?!" Naruto continued.

"Get your butt off my desk!" Tsunade yelled while simultaneously using her arm to sweep her son off sideways and onto the floor. He landed in a heap next to the wall to her left.

Naruto sat up quickly. "That hurt, Baa-chan!"

Tsunade folded her arms once again—this time in satisfaction—and raised her eyebrows. "Stay off my desk next time."

While Naruto fumed Temari brought a large scroll out of the bag she had with her. Tsunade's eyes widened in surprise. "That's much bigger than I was expecting. Do you know what's in it?"

Temari shook her head. "No one can get it open. It has a blood seal."

Naruto had long since stopped fuming and was now paying rapt attention. "A blood seal? You mean only someone from my family can open it?"

Temari nodded and held out the scroll. "Here. I'm curious as hell about what's in this thing," she said with wry smile.

Naruto stood and gingerly took the scroll from Temari's hands. He turned it until he saw a seal in the middle on one side. Thanks to his training with Tomoyo and his contract with the frogs he knew exactly how to open it. He bit down on the pad of his thumb and pressed it to the center of the seal. There was a popping sound along with a small puff of smoke and the edge of the scroll fell loose.

He sat down on the floor and proceeded to carefully unroll his bit of family heritage. When it was fully open for all to see both he and Tsunade gasped. "Kaa-san...that's..."

"I know," Tsunade answered quietly.

Kankuro was getting irritated. "Well? What is it already?!"

Naruto spoke up. "It's a summoning contract...for dragons," he said in disbelieving awe.

Temari's expression went from shock to outright skepticism. "What?! Dragons aren't real."

Naruto looked at Temari defensively. "It's right there!" he said as he jabbed his fingers at the contract.

Tsunade also looked skeptical. "I don't want to believe they came all this way for a work of fiction, Naruto, but Temari does make a point," she said carefully.

Naruto frowned and quickly rolled up his scroll. "My clan wouldn't put a blood seal on something that was fake!" He stood up. "And I'll prove it!" He stalked out of the office.

"Naruto!" Tsunade called out. When he didn't return she sighed heavily. "I'm sorry about that. He can be really headstrong sometimes."

Kankuro cocked an eyebrow. "We noticed."

Tsunade cleared her throat. "Yes, well...seeing as how it's so late, would you like to stay in Konoha for the night?"

"Yes—thank you," Temari replied with a polite nod.

Tsunade smiled. "Shikamaru."

Shikamaru appeared quickly. "Hai, Tsunade-sama?"

"Please make sure that our guests have comfortable rooms for the night."

Shikamaru sighed inwardly. He was starting to wonder why he bothered becoming a chuunin in the first place, seeing as how most of the time he was nothing more than a glorified messenger boy. "Hai."

 

* * *

As Shikamaru and the Suna team walked toward the inn Temari couldn't stop herself from making occasional glances in the direction of her guide's rear end. It irritated her to no end that she was attracted to such a weakling—albeit an incredibly smart, kinda cute weakling.  _"Damn my hormones,"_  she grumbled in her mind.

They stopped at a long, two-story building and Shikamaru handed Temari a set of keys. "Here. Just tell them you want the guest rooms," he said before turning around to leave.

"Shikamaru..." Temari began.

The boy in question turned around. "Yeah?"

"Night," Temari finished pathetically, silently cursing herself for not coming up with something more interesting.

Shikamaru smirked, then smiled. "Night."

Shikamaru walked away and Temari sighed with disappointment. As the siblings walked into the building she noticed Kankuro covering his mouth with his hand as he snickered. "Shut the hell up or I'm gonna shove that puppet up your ass."

Kankuro's eyes widened. He instantly stopped laughing and put a few more feet of distance between himself and his sister.

 

* * *

Naruto knew he had acted childish, but he couldn't help it. He'd spent all day in anticipation of the scroll he now held and there was a very good chance it was nothing but junk. He knew there was probably no point to it, but made his way through the streets to his house, ran up to his room and grabbed a flashlight. If he was going to try this then there was only one safe place.

 

* * *

Naruto sat in the middle of the Namikaze training field with the unrolled scroll on the ground in front of him. The blood pounded in his ears as he bit the pad of his left thumb and dabbed the resulting blood on each of his other fingers. He signed the contract—which had on it a couple of other names he didn't recognize—and was about to press his fingers down at the bottom—the same as he had done with the frog scroll. Suddenly, an image of Gama Bunta flashed through his mind and then a memory of a conversation he'd had with Jiraiya while they had been training together.

_(("Hey, Ero sennin?" Naruto asked as they made their way toward the town they would be staying at for a few days._

_Jiraiya's eyebrow twitched. "Yeah?"_

" _Now that I have so much more chakra, can I get some more summons? It would be so cool so summon dogs like Kakashi sensei," Naruto said with a grin._

_Jiraiya shook his head. "Sorry. No can do."_

_Naruto frowned. "Why?"_

" _Because you can't have more than one summoning contract at a time. You are bound to the contract by blood and to take another contract would break that bond."_

_Naruto hung his head in disappointment.))_

Naruto stared at the contract for a moment, his hand hovering above the space for his fingerprints. He swallowed, realizing just how close he'd come to seriously screwing up. "I'd better talk to Ero-sennin first," with that, he rolled up the scroll and headed home.


	18. Education

Tsunade was waiting for him in the living room when Naruto got home. She stood up immediately. "Naruto, you didn't sign that scroll did you?"

"No. I was going to, but I realized I should talk to Ero-Sennin first." He put the dragon scroll on the couch. "Can you find him for me?" he asked as he plopped down next to the scroll.

"Sure—but, Naruto?"

Naruto looked up. "Hm?"

"Please don't throw temper tantrums in front of guests from other hidden villages," Tsunade asked, her expression stern, yet gentle.

"I didn't throw a tantrum. I walked out—and I'm sorry. It's just that..."

Tsunade put up a hand. "I know. You were disappointed."

Naruto nodded.

"Just try to think a little more before you do things." Tsunade closed her eyes in exhaustion. "Well, I'm headed for bed. Night," Tsunade said with a yawn as she stretched her arms over her head.

"Night," Naruto said with a smile, thankful that he hadn't gotten much of a lecture.

"Oh yeah," Tsunade said as she reached the entrance to the hallway, "Kakashi said he wanted to talk to you about something tomorrow morning so try not to go too far till he gets here."

"Okay," Naruto replied with a shrug.

Tsunade chuckled to herself as she made her way up the stairs. "Boy is  _he_  in for a surprise."

 

* * *

"You want me to do WHAT?!" Naruto asked in shock.

Kakashi chuckled warmly. "I want you to be my best man," he repeated.

Naruto was happy but also confused. "But why me? I thought you'd pick Gai-sensei."

Kakashi and Tomoyo settled down onto the couch in Naruto's living room. Kakashi sweat-dropped. "Because Gai would do something embarrassing."

Naruto frowned as he joined the couple on the couch. "But won't he be disappointed?"

Kakashi shook his head. "Nah. I just told him I wanted you to participate so that you would have the courage to ask Hinata someday." He ignored Naruto's choking sound and went on. "Then he did his whole 'flames of youth'...thing," he said with an off-handed flick of his wrist.

Naruto snorted, then scratched the back of his head. "I guess I'll do it then," he said with a smile.

Tomoyo smiled and hugged her cousin. "Great!" She sat back up and frowned. "Now I just need to find a way to convince Anko-chan to be my maid of honor."

"You know Anko?" Naruto asked in surprise.

Tomoyo smiled. "Yeah. We were best friends when we were kids. Our parents introduced us, hoping I'd keep her in line." She snickered. "She corrupted me instead."

Naruto laughed but then his expression turned sympathetic. "Why'd she say no?"

"Well, she said yes at first but then I told her she had to wear a dress kimono," Tomoyo answered in a dejected tone.

Naruto thought for a moment. "What about Hina-chan or Sakura-chan?"

Tomoyo smiled. "If I can't convince Anko-chan I'll keep them in mind."

It was then that Tsunade came strolling into the room. "Hey, brat, if you wanna go say goodbye to Gaara you better do it now."

Naruto's head snapped in his mother's direction. "What?!"

 

* * *

The Suna team was walking toward the main gates of Konoha when they heard a familiar voice call out to them.

"Wait!" Naruto yelled as he ran to them.

Gaara raised an eyebrow in interest. "Naruto."

"I didn't think you'd be leaving so soon," Naruto said as he stopped in front of his friends.

"We were only coming to deliver the scroll, not to visit," Gaara answered plainly.

Naruto's shoulders sagged as he breathed out a sigh of disappointment. "Oh, I forgot to say thank you yesterday. And...I'm also sorry...for acting the way I did."

Gaara smiled slightly. "I think we can forgive you."

Temari put a hand on her little brother's shoulder. "We should get going," she said with a warm smile.

"Do you guys mind going ahead for a minute? I need to speak with Naruto," Gaara asked.

Kankuro nodded. "Okay. Just don't take too long. See ya, Naruto," he said with a wave.

"Later," Naruto answered.

Temari stopped and looked over her shoulder and smirked. "Tell that lazy pain in the ass I said goodbye."

Naruto laughed. "You got it." He looked to Gaara. "So, what's up?"

"You won't make Hokage," Gaara said bluntly.

Naruto was immediately on the defensive. "Excuse me?"

"With your current maturity level you just don't have what it takes to be a leader," Gaara explained.

Naruto folded his arms angrily. "Oh, and I suppose you do?"

"Yes, I do. And the way you're reacting to what I've said only proves my point. If you can't even listen to constructive criticism without reacting like a child then how do you expect to lead an entire community?"

The gears in Naruto's mind suddenly began moving and he fell silent.

"Friends help one another..."

Naruto looked up. "Huh?"

"That is why I felt I had to say something. If you want to achieve your dream, you just need to grow up a little. It shouldn't be too hard of a task...for the guy who saved my life," Gaara said with a smile.

Naruto's face broke out in a smile. "Thanks, Gaara," he said, offering his hand.

Gaara nodded. "You are welcome," he said as he took Naruto's hand and shook it. "Goodbye."

"See ya," Naruto said with a cheerful wave. As he watched Gaara walk away he knew what he had to do—and he  _knew_  he wasn't going to like it.

 

* * *

Naruto walked slowly as he headed home. All this time he had only thought about the physical aspect of becoming a Hokage—not the mental. If Gaara hadn't said something... He looked up at his father's face staring down at him from the Hokage monument and his eyes became determined. "I'll make you proud of me."

 

* * *

Tsunade looked up when she heard the knock on the door of her home office. "Hai?"

The door opened and Naruto walked in. "Hey," he said, his face serious.

Tsunade looked at her son curiously and stood up. Something about him seemed...different. "Are you okay?"

Naruto took a calming breath and let it out slowly. He lowered himself to his knees and rested his hands on top of them, then bowed his head in respect.

Instantly, a dangerous glint flashed in Tsunade's eyes and they flattened down into a glare. Before Naruto could blink he had a kunai at his throat.

"Who are you?!" Tsunade demanded. "What have you done with my son?!"

"K-K-Kaa-san! It's me!" Naruto sputtered.

"Bullshit! My son does NOT bow to me!" Tsunade replied angrily. "Now I will ask you one more time. Where—is—my—son?"

"You told me never to go to bed angry!" Naruto suddenly blurted out.

Tsunade's grip loosened a bit. "What?"

"When I had that fight with Hina-chan. You told me never go to bed angry," Naruto said, praying he had just proven who he was.

Tsunade released her son and dropped her kunai. "You are Naruto." She hugged him tightly. "I'm _so_ sorry."

Naruto heaved a great sigh of relief. "It's okay. I guess kneeling was a bit much."

Tsunade released him and checked over his throat for cuts. She was pleased when she found none. She sat down on the floor. "So," she said with a nervous chuckle, "What did you want to see me about?"

"Can you teach me about being a Hokage?" Naruto asked, the serious look back in his eyes.

Tsunade blinked in surprise. "Really?"

Naruto nodded. "Gaara reminded me today that I need more than just strength—And I feel really stupid for not realizing it myself," he finished with a frown.

Tsunade's expression became sympathetic. "You're not stupid. You were just concentrating too hard on one aspect of becoming Hokage. It blinded you to everything else you need to do."

Naruto smiled.

"You know a lot of it will be boring, right?" Tsunade warned.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, but it's something I have to do," he said with determination.

Tsunade smiled. "Okay then. Come with me to the office tomorrow. I just hope it doesn't make you want to pick a new profession," she said with a laugh.

"Huh?"

 

* * *

Naruto walked along next to his mother with a spring in his step. He was excited to get a preview of what it would be like once he gained the title of Hokage.

When they reached the door to the Hokage tower the chuunin guard bowed slightly. "Hokage-sama, Naruto-sama," he said with a smile.

Tsunade smiled. "Ohayo." She walked on into the building and Naruto followed.

Once they were upstairs the receptionist greeted them as well. "Ohayo, Tsunade-sama."

"Ohayo, Nabiki. Do you have anything for me this morning?" Tsunade asked.

"Just the usual," Nabiki said, handing Tsunade a stack of papers.

"Arigato," Tsunade replied as she took the stack.

"Hey, Naruto-kun," Nabiki said with a slight wave and a big smile.

"Hey!" Naruto walked over to the desk. "Where've you been lately?"

Nabiki laughed. "Had a couple of long missions. I'll come by and see you later."

"Don't need to. I'll be here all day."

Nabiki blinked in surprise. "You will?"

"Yeah. I'm learning about the job of Hokage today. I'm gonna watch Kaa-san," Naruto said proudly.

Nabiki snorted. "Then you're gonna be watching a lot of sleeping."

"I heard that!" came Tsunade's irritated voice from her office.

Nabiki chuckled. "I'll see you later."

"Hai!" Naruto replied. He then walked into the office and shut the door behind him.

 

* * *

Naruto was ready to shove a kunai through his skull just to escape the boredom. For two hours he had watched his mother follow a pattern of signing papers, sleeping, drinking the occasional cup of sake and arguing with Shizune over the evils of said sake. The pad of paper he'd brought with him to take notes was now covered in drawings of bowls of ramen and he was certain the clock was moving slower than normal just to torment him.

Finally, Tsunade looked at the clock. "Well, time to go hand out mission assignments," she said as she stood and cracked her neck from side to side.

"Thank GOD!" Naruto blurted out.

Tsunade looked at him and laughed. "Let's go."

 

* * *

Hinata's eyes widened a bit when she saw Naruto sitting next to Tsunade at the assignment table. "Naruto-kun, what's going on?"

"I'm learning about being a Hokage," Naruto answered with much less enthusiasm than he had when he'd spoken to Nabiki about it. He still had a small smile on his face though.

Hinata's confusion turned to happiness. "Oh! That's wonderful, Naruto-kun!"

Tsunade looked through her assignment list. "I'm afraid I only have a D rank for you three today," she said to team eight.

"But that's way below our skill level!" Kiba complained.

Tsunade eyed the young Inuzuka. "Well if you'd rather not make any money at all today..."

Kiba sighed in frustration. "Okay okay." He took the paper and team 8 walked away.

"Good luck, Naruto-kun," Hinata called over her shoulder.

Naruto smiled and waved.

Neji, Lee, and Tenten showed up next. "Here you go," Tsunade said while handing them a mission sheet.

Neji looked at the rank and an incredulous expression crossed his features. "But thi..."

"Don't wanna hear it," Tsunade said, cutting him off.

Gai's team walked away with only slightly less grumbling than team eight.

 

* * *

An hour or so later Naruto and Tsunade were back in her office. Tsunade had gone back to signing papers and Naruto had gone back to doodling on his pad of paper. After yet another hour had passed Shizune came in. "Tsunade-sama?"

"Hai?" Tsunade answered.

"The zoning director is here to see you," Shizune answered.

Tsunade groaned. "Send him in."

Shizune nodded her head and left. A moment later a man in a black haori and red pants walked into the office and sat down.

"Sakai-san, what can I do for you today?" Tsunade asked pleasantly.

The man sighed. "I'm sorry to bother you with this again, but the situation has gotten worse."

Tsunade frowned. "Did you tell them what I suggested?"

"Yes, and they still say that it is unfair."

Tsunade sighed and put her hand to her forehead. "Oh for crying out loud."

"What's going on?" Naruto asked.

Tsunade looked at her son with a thoughtful expression and then turned back to Sakai. "Sakai-san, would please explain the situation to my son?"

Sakai looked at her in confusion but shrugged and began speaking. "There is a company that would like to put in a new movie theater. It would be in an area zoned for business but it's also right on the border of a residential-only zone. The building they have planned is large and the people living in the houses near it say that it would look terrible and drive down their property values."

"What've you tried?" Naruto asked.

"Compensating them for the value loss, but they won't hear of it."

Naruto thought for a moment. "What if you disguise it?"

"Disguise the theater?" Sakai asked.

"Yeah," Naruto continued with a smile, "What if the theater looked like part of the landscape? Like with a genjutsu or something?"

Tsunade and Sakai looked at each other. "What do you think Sakai?" Tsunade asked.

Sakai put his hand up to his mouth in thought. "Hmmm. A genjutsu just might do the trick." He looked at Naruto with a pleased expression. "Thank you, Naruto-sama," he said with a slight bow of his head.

Naruto reciprocated the nod. "No problem," he said with a big grin.

Sakai stood up. "I'll be on my way then," he said to Tsunade.

"Good luck," Tsunade answered.

"I'm sure I won't need it, but thank you." Sakai then turned around and left.

Tsunade turned to her son. "Great job, kiddo," she said, beaming with motherly pride.

Naruto's smile could not have been any wider.


	19. It's Real

After three days of going to work with his mother, Naruto decided the first thing he was going to do as Hokage would be to find some way to reduce the amount of paperwork. He yawned for what seemed like the millionth time as Tsunade finished signing yet another paper.

Tsunade picked up a manila envelope from her desk and pulled out a new set of papers. Naruto looked up in minor interest. The papers Tsunade had been signing until that point had all just been stacked on her desk. Why were these different?

"What are those, Kaa-san?"

Tsunade looked at Naruto thoughtfully. "You know what? These are some things you might actually be able to help me with," she said with a smile.

Naruto immediately hopped off his chair. "Really?!"

Tsunade nodded. "Yup. Drag that chair over here."

Naruto did as instructed and sat down.

"Okay," Tsunade said as she picked up the top paper, "these are the newest mission requests. One of your jobs as Hokage would be to go through these, decide which ones we will take on and give them a rank." She pointed at the top right of the page. "This tells you what kind of mission it is."

Naruto looked at the mission type curiously. "Grunt work?"

Tsunade laughed. "Anything that doesn't involve fighting or potential fighting gets this title. Most of these get a D rank."

As Naruto looked over the mission specifics he was very glad he was no longer a first-year rookie.  _"Tilling a farm field. Yuck."_

"Okay then," Tsunade pointed to a space in the upper left. "The mission rank goes here."

Naruto wrote a 'D' in the space and they moved on to the next request.

 

* * *

Anko's arms were folded and she walked along stiffly, trying desperately to ignore her current living shadow.

"Pleeeeeease, Anko-chan?" Tomoyo pleaded as she hopped backward in front of her friend.

Anko's eye twitched. "No."

"Come on! You're the only adult friend I have left from the old days."

"No, I'm not. Ask Iruka. I'm sure he'd look great in a dress Kimono," Anko answered as she continued walking.

Tomoyo's smile dropped off her face like a stone and she stopped walking, causing Anko to halt in her tracks. "You'd really say no to being part of the most important day of my life over a stupid dress kimono?"

Anko groaned. She could easily say no to Tomoyo when Tomoyo was being all perky and cute, but that pout—that god dammed depressed pout. It made her feel guilty like nothing else in existence. She sighed loudly in defeat. "Fine."

Tomoyo's face pulled a complete one-eighty. "YATTA!" She proceeded to squeeze the life out of the woman in front of her. "Thank you, Anko-chan!"

"Yeah yeah. Get off already would ya?" Anko said as she tried to move Tomoyo's arms.

Tomoyo let go. "Sorry. I'm just so happy!"

"But if that dress kimono is pink I'll use your intestines for Christmas garland," Anko threatened with a finger pointed at Tomoyo.

Tomoyo sweat-dropped and laughed nervously. "Oh come on. Who would want pink kimonos for their wedding?"

Anko eyed her suspiciously for a moment. "Okay. I'll see you later. I need my dango fix."

As soon as Anko was out of site Tomoyo pulled a pen and a small notepad out of her pocket. She looked down a list that said  _'wedding shopping'_  at the top. Next to  _'kimonos'_  she crossed out  _pink_ and quickly wrote  _purple_.

 

* * *

Naruto marked an A at the top of the last paper and Tsunade smiled in satisfaction. "I think you did really well, kiddo."

Naruto grinned but it faded a bit as he caught sight of another envelope on the desk. This one was black. "What's in that one?"

Tsunade's face darkened. "Those are the assassination requests. You don't need to worry about those until you actually become Hokage." She took the envelope and put it in her desk drawer.

Naruto's expression became solemn. "Oh..."

A knock sounded on the door. "Hai?"

Tomoyo poked her head in. "Can I borrow Naruto for a bit?"

Tsunade looked at Naruto. "I think you've had enough for one day."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks, Kaa-san." He got up and followed Tomoyo out the door.

 

* * *

"That's great!" Naruto exclaimed as they walked down the main street.

Tomoyo's smile widened. "Now I just have to pick out dress kimonos in a different color. Originally the bridesmaids were going to wear pink," she said with a wince.

Naruto made a face. "So anyway, what'd you need me for?"

"Well, two things actually," Tomoyo answered. "I wanted to try teaching you how to make the special kunai for hiraishin today."

"Yosh!" Naruto exclaimed.

Tomoyo chuckled. "And I thought since I'm shopping for wedding outfits anyway we should see if we can find you a formal kimono too."

Naruto grimaced. "Do we have to?" Tomoyo gave him a withering look and he relented immediately. "Okay okay. Let's get this over with so I can train."

Tomoyo smiled and they continued walking.

 

* * *

Naruto waited on a metal bench next to the fitting rooms. He glanced around the store. Being one of only two wedding shops in the city allowed it to be very large. There were separate sections for bride, groom, children and bridal party—and of course, the latter of the two were also divided by gender. He had lost sight of his cousin long ago and was now tapping his fingers impatiently.

It was about then that Tomoyo showed up with an armload of boy's formal kimonos, all in black. She unloaded them onto the counter.

"How many?" the clerk asked.

"Six."

The clerk handed Tomoyo a plastic card with a six on it, which Tomoyo promptly handed off to her cousin. "Okay. You try these on and I'll see what else I can find." With that she disappeared once again into the sea of clothing, completely ignoring the thunderstruck look on Naruto's face.

 

* * *

A half-hour later Tomoyo and Naruto walked out of the doors of the wedding shop, loaded down with bags and packages. Naruto held two boxes and his kimono. Tomoyo had six boxes and two outfits in plastic bags on coat hangers.

After watching Tomoyo's pile nearly topple twice Naruto got an idea. "Hang on a sec."

"What?" Tomoyo asked around her mountain of boxes.

Naruto put his hands in his favorite seal. Four Narutos appeared. "Got a mission for you guys." He pointed at one bunshin. "You take my stuff home."

The bunshin gave a short salute. "Osu!" it picked up the stuff and walked away.

"And you guys take this stuff to Tomoyo-chan's place," Naruto instructed to the other clones.

The clones mimicked the clone that had left before them.

Naruto, who was quite pleased with himself, turned to his cousin. "See? Now we can go train."

Tomoyo nodded and laughed, although she was annoyed that she hadn't come up with that solution herself. "Okay then. Let's go."

 

* * *

Naruto turned his father's kunai over and over again, occasionally running his fingers over the sai-like prongs at the hilt.  _All kunai should be made like this. It'd be way better for blocking_.

"Okay," Tomoyo said as she removed some rolls of paper strips and some paintbrushes and ink from her bag, "Today you're gonna practice writing the kanji for hiraishin. When you're done wrap them on the kunai. These," she said, pointing to Minato's kunai, "will be your shiki (a/n-rite). These markers will pull you to them when you activate the jutsu. It's kinda like a summoning in reverse. You can use anything, really, but kunai are very convenient." She unrolled a single strip that already had something on it. "These are the symbols for the seal. You practice—I'm going to do some more work on the field."

She slung her bag over her shoulder, took a few steps toward the middle of the field then stopped and made a face as she eyed all the stumps still left from her little demolition spree. She pulled a foot long scroll from her bag and unrolled it. "Good thing I brought this. I'm definitely gonna need help for this one," she said with a smile.

Naruto blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

Tomoyo bit her thumb, made a few seals and slammed her hand to the ground. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" There was a popping sound and a cloud of smoke appeared.

When the smoke dissipated Naruto was surprised to see ten rodent-like animals of various sizes. The largest one being around the size of a moose. He'd never seen anything like them. "What are they?" he asked with wide eyes.

Tomoyo grinned. "Meerkats. I got the scroll from a foreign traveler while I was in Ganshou."

A meerkat the size of a medium dog spoke up. "Oi. Don't talk about us like we're not even here."

Tomoyo smiled apologetically. "Gomen, Idohori." She pointed at her cousin. "This is Naruto, my little cousin." Several greetings went to Naruto from the group.

"Hey guys," Naruto said with a grin.

"Okay, everyone. I got a job for you," Tomoyo explained. She pointed to the stumps. "I need these dug up please."

Idohori cocked an eye ridge. "And what do we get for so much work? We have burrows to maintain you know."

Tomoyo chuckled. "Of course you'll get the usual treat."

A loud cheer went up from the group and they went to work on the closest stump.

Naruto looked at Tomoyo. "What's 'the usual treat'?"

Tomoyo grinned. "Dango."

Naruto laughed and went back to his seal practice.

 

* * *

"Are you sure?" Pein, leader of the Akatsuki, asked his subordinate.

Itachi nodded. "Hai."

"So, Naruto will be attending the chuunin exam. So many attempts to capture him and all we had to do was wait for him to show up on our doorstep." Pein allowed himself a small smirk. "The time has come..."

 

* * *

Tomoyo handed the last stick of dango to Idohori. "Thanks a bunch, guys. You really saved me."

Idohori nodded. "You know us—anything for dango," he said with a wink. He turned to his friends. "Mina! We're going!"

A shout of agreement sounded from the other meerkats.

Idohori held up a paw. "Ja!" and all of them disappeared.

Tomoyo laughed and went to check up on Naruto. "How're you doing over here?"

Naruto smiled and held up ten kunai wrapped in the seal covered strips. "All set. When do we start?"

Tomoyo looked up at the orange colors of the sunset. "Friday. This isn't a jutsu you should practice in the dark and I have more wedding stuff to do." She sighed happily. "I can't wait till Saturday."

"Are you sure you won't make him get rid of those stupid books?"

Tomoyo just laughed and walked away. Naruto was a bit perturbed but he followed her anyway.

 

* * *

Friday morning Tsunade looked over Sasuke's latest psych evaluation report and sighed. Shizune looked at her with concern. "What is it, Tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade closed her eyes and rubbed them with her fingers. "I'm starting to think the  _only_  way to settle Sasuke down is to have Itachi killed."

Shizune blinked in surprise. "An assassination?"

"I would...if I wasn't positive Sasuke would go even more off the deep end because he was denied his revenge," Tsunade said with a frustrated scowl.

Shizune sighed sympathetically and then perked up like she'd had an idea. "Tsunade-sama—What if we send him on the mission to that hideout Jiraiya found?"

Tsunade looked skeptical. "Send him to an abandoned Akatsuki lair? What good would that do?"

"It might at least let him feel like he's doing something towards finding Itachi," Shizune offered.

Tsunade frowned in thought. "Alright. Although I think I'll send all of team seven. They haven't had a mission above D-rank in weeks and Naruto's getting restless," she said with a wince.

Shizune giggled. "I'll send for them."

Tsunade held up a hand. "Not yet. I need to decide on other team members. Not to mention that Tomoyo's wedding is on Saturday and I know Naruto would be upset if he had to miss it."

"It'll be interesting seeing Naruto-kun in formal clothing," Shizune said with an amused smile.

Tsunade chuckled. "Indeed."

 

* * *

Naruto, Sasuke, and ten Naruto clones were cutting ivy off of various buildings and structures around the Namikaze complex. Sasuke was working on a particularly stubborn vine on a rooftop and it was pissing him off. "Remind me why I agreed to this?" he demanded of his brother who was several feet away, working on the dragon fountain.

Naruto looked up and resisted the urge to laugh at the leaf that was residing in Sasuke's hair. "Because we're family and this is partially yours now too," he stated. "Besides," Naruto said as he climbed to the top of the fountain, "It's nice to have company besides  _them_ ," he said as he jabbed a thumb backward at three of the clones who were nearby.

Sasuke smirked and went back to his current vine.

 

* * *

Tomoyo walked into the Namikaze complex with a spring in her step. "Naruto-kun!" she said as she passed through the gate. "I hope you're ready to work hard because..." Her words failed her and her mouth hung open. The complex wasn't finished by any stretch of the imagination, but ninety percent of the vines and other organic debris were completely gone.

In the middle of it all sat Naruto and Sasuke. The boys were sitting on the cobblestone street in front of the fountain. Naruto had a huge smile on his face and Sasuke wore a self-satisfied smirk.

"Naruto-kun! Sasuke-kun! It looks wonderful!" Tomoyo exclaimed in awe. She walked over and gave each of them a hug—Sasuke grimaced at this. "It's an awesome surprise! Thank you both so much!"

"Don't look at me. It was the dobe's idea," Sasuke explained.

Tomoyo laughed a little. "Yeah, but you still helped."

Sasuke smirked again.

Tomoyo held up her bag. "Well, let's get to work." She looked at Sasuke. "You gonna hang around?" she asked with a smile.

Sasuke shrugged. "I don't have anything better to do."

Tomoyo smiled and led the way. Naruto and Sasuke followed behind her.

As they neared the entrance to the field Naruto thoughts began to wander. "Neh, Sasuke?"

"Hm?"

"You think it's possible to combine rasengan and chidori?" Naruto asked offhandedly.

Sasuke's eyebrows went up and then flattened into a thoughtful scowl. "I don't think so. The way they use chakra is too different."

Naruto frowned.

"Besides—we don't know if you're the right elemental type to use lightning."

"Elemental type?"

Sasuke looked at Naruto with an incredulous expression. "Kakashi-sensei never told you about elements?!"

Naruto shook his head.

Sasuke smacked his hand to his forehead. "Of all the stupid—just ask Kakashi-sensei about it. I don't feel like explaining."

 

* * *

Sasuke sat down on a nearby rock as Tomoyo handed Naruto the kunai he had made five days before.

"Okay. First things first." She held out her hand. "Shiki please." Naruto handed her the kunai. "Lemme show you how it's done," she said with a grin. She took a few steps away from the boys and threw a seal kunai into one of the wooden practice dummies, then put her hands into the rabbit seal. There had been no smoke, no sound, no warning of any kind—yet she had instantly vanished and reappeared at her destination.

Naruto's jaw dropped and Sasuke's eyes were wide.

"A—Amazing," Naruto commented in awe.

Tomoyo smiled, threw the shiki at the boys' feet and teleported back. "Now it's your turn. Take one of your shiki and rub a small amount of blood on the seal. This will connect you to it." Naruto was about to bite his thumb when Tomoyo grabbed his hand. "Hang on a sec." She reached into her weapons pouch and pulled out a pinky ring. It was silver and had a small bump on one side. She placed it in Naruto's hand.

Naruto's eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "What's this?"

"This is something I've been working on in my spare time the last couple weeks. It's a special summoning ring." Tomoyo held up her right hand. On her pinky was a similar ring, only it was gold in color and thinner to be more lady-like. She pointed to the small bump which was situated on the underside- of her finger. "This casing contains a very small pin. When you push in it with your thumb," she said as she demonstrated, "the casing is pushed back and the pin punctures your skin." She proudly showed the bead of blood ballooning out of the hole the pin had made and smiled. "Makes things faster and less painful," she said with a laugh.

Naruto looked at the ring for a moment, then shrugged and put it on.

"You remember what I did?" Tomoyo asked.

Naruto nodded.

"Let's see what you got then," Tomoyo said with her thumb up.

Naruto used the ring and smiled. It was much more convenient than biting his thumb. He rubbed the resulting blood on the shiki and threw it at the furthest part of the log wall surrounding the field. He let out a calming breath and formed the rabbit seal. He didn't even have time to blink before he vanished...and reappeared about two inches from his previous position.

Sasuke had not been so dangerously close to bursting out laughing since the incident with Tenten. He bit the inside of his cheek so hard that he began to notice the distinct taste of blood. He sighed with relief when the urge to laugh was gone.

Tomoyo made an odd sucking sound through her teeth. "Hmm. I think this is going to take a while," she a slight chuckle.

Naruto frowned at his failure and then set his face in determination. "I  _will_  get this."

Tomoyo smiled. "I know you will." She looked at her watch. "I have to get going. Gotta pick up my dress kimono. Don't forget about the rehearsal. Five-o-clock sharp."

Naruto nodded. "You got it."

 

* * *

Jiraiya had just walked through the gate when he noticed Tomoyo heading his way. "Ah, Tomoyo-san. Do you know where the brat is?"

Tomoyo laughed. "I just left him at our complex. He's learning hiraishin."

Jiraiya's eyebrows raised. "That should prove interesting."

Tomoyo smirked. "Indeed. Ja na!" she said with a wave.

"Hai. Arigato." Jiraiya then headed toward the Namikaze complex.

 

* * *

When Naruto saw that he had once again failed to move more than a few inches he gritted his teeth in anger. "Dammit!" He sighed and sat down for a moment to think.  _Okay. Concentration isn't the problem. I'm doing the seal right._  He stood up and yelled to the sky. "What am I doing wrong?!"

"You're not putting in enough chakra," spoke Jiraiya's voice from behind Naruto, who turned around to see the older man with an eyebrow cocked in amusement.

"I'm glad you think this is funny," Naruto complained.

Jiraiya shrugged. "Not necessarily funny, but it is interesting. But seriously—just put more chakra into it."

"But what if I put in too much and hit a tree on the other side of Konoha or something?"

Jiraiya laughed. "You won't. In fact, you could put every ounce of your chakra into it and you still won't go anywhere but to your mark."

Naruto gave him a questioning look. "You can use hiraishin?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "No, but I saw your father use it often enough to know how it works." He walked over to Naruto. "I was told you needed to see me?"

An expression of recollection blazed across Naruto features. "Oh!-Right!" He turned to Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke. I'm goin' back to my house."

Sasuke stood up and the grass returned to its pre-squished condition. "Well, I'm going too then. Nothing to do here."

Naruto nodded and looked at Jiraiya. "Wait till you see what I got to show you," he said with a grin.

 

* * *

"Okay! Got it!" Naruto called out as he came thundering down the stairs. He cleared the last five with a jump and jogged into the living room.

Jiraiya's curiosity piqued when he saw the large scroll in Naruto's hands. "Is that a summoning contract?"

"Yeah," Naruto said with a grin, "It's for dragons!"

Jiraiya blinked three times and let out a huge belly laugh. Naruto's smile fell and he looked incredibly perturbed.

When Jiraiya managed to catch his breath he spoke. "Oh—Oh my stomach." Another volley of laughter ensued. "You..." he said with a wagging of his right index finger. "I gotta admit, that was a good one." His laughter stopped suddenly when he noticed the look of irritation on Naruto's face. "Wait...Are you serious?"

" _YEAH_!" Naruto replied in a 'duh' tone of voice. "You think I'd call you all the way out here for a stupid joke?! Come on! Even I'm not  _that_  irresponsible!"

Jiraiya cleared his throat. "Gomen." He held out his hand. "Alright then. Let me see what you got here."

Naruto handed him the scroll and waited expectantly. Sasuke folded his arms. "I tried to tell him dragons don't exist. Maybe you can talk some sense into this dobe," he said, ignoring his brother's angry glare.

Jiraiya unrolled the scroll and looked it over. In the end, he simply sighed and handed it back to Naruto. "I honestly don't know what to tell you. Where did you get this?"

"From the Kazekage. He said it belonged to my family once," Naruto replied defensively.

Jiraiya frowned. "Do you have proof of that?"

"It had a blood seal on it and  _my_  blood opened it," Naruto said firmly.

Surprise showed on Jiraiya's face but his opinion of the whole thing didn't change. "I don't know why it would be sealed, but it can't be a real contract. Dragons don't exist," he said with an apologetic expression.

Naruto sighed through his nose. "Let's just say for a second that it is real. Are you sure there's no way for someone to have two summoning contracts?"

"Positive. I would talk to Gamabunta before you do anything rash." Jiraiya's eyes widened. "You haven't signed it, have you?!"

Naruto shook his head. "No. I wrote my name but I didn't put down my fingerprints."

Jiraiya sighed in relief. "Okay then. Let's go talk to Gamabunta."

 

* * *

Jiraiya, Naruto, and Sasuke stood in the middle of Tsunade's training field. Jiraiya took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Let's hope he answers. He's had a summoning block on since Gamakichi died."

Naruto's expression became solemn. He clutched the front of his shirt and stared downward. He knew it wasn't his fault, but he still couldn't help feeling guilty for his friend's death—and the fact that the young frog's chakra resided in his body didn't help either.  _Gamakichi..._

Jiraiya made the usual preparations. "Kuchiyose no Jutsu!"

When the smoke cleared Gamabunta sat in the field with a small smile. "Hello, Jiraiya."

The change in his longtime friend made Jiraiya's stomach sick. "How are you doing?" he asked gently.

"I think I'm alright—my mate on the other hand..." Gamabunta sighed. "She's...coping. She tells me she's alright, but she still cries when she thinks I'm out of earshot."

Jiraiya nodded. "It's hard to lose a child. I felt the same way when Minato died," he said quietly.

Gamabunta nodded. "What is it that you need?"

"Naruto actually has a question for you," Jiraiya explained.

Gamabunta looked at Naruto in curiosity. "Oh?"

Naruto swallowed hard. Suddenly the idea of telling Gamabunta that he wanted to dissolve their contract seemed cruel. "I..."

"Is something wrong?" Gamabunta asked in concern.

Naruto showed the giant frog the dragon scroll. "A few days ago I got this from the Kazekage. It's a summoning contract that used to belong to my family." He unrolled it and laid it on the ground. "It says it's a dragon contract." He missed the stunned look on Gamabunta's face. "Could it be real?"

Gamabunta just stared at the contract as memories came flooding into his mind like a tsunami. "It's real...and you should burn it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Dumps crocodiles into the RPR moat and sets beta readers as guards b4 she dives inside and locks it tight)) ::Coughs:: I haven't hit you guys with a really mean cliffy in a while. Just remember. If you kill me you won't know what happens next.


	20. The Shame of the Summons

Naruto's eyes snapped wide open. "Burn it?! Why?!"

 Gamabunta set his jaw. He had a very good reason behind his command. "Do as I say."

Naruto glared at the giant frog. "Not till you explain why!"

Gamabunta matched Naruto's glare. "This is not a matter to be discussed with humans."

"Gamabunta," Jiraiya interrupted, "are we not your subordinates?" He knew he was being very bold and possibly rude but he also knew how important this whole thing was to Naruto and he could not allow the boy he loved like a grandson to be denied something from his family unless there was a damn good reason.

Gamabunta frowned in thought.

"Does that not that make us family?" Jiraiya urged on.

Gamabunta let out a sigh which caused the treetops to bend a bit. "Alright," he relented. He looked at Sasuke. "But he must leave."

Naruto shook his head. "He's my brother. He stays," he said firmly.

Gamabunta knew the look that had entered Naruto's eyes—it meant he would not budge. "Very well then." He looked at the sky, which was beginning to cloud over. "It was nearly one hundred and fifty years ago. I wasn't much older than Gamakichi." His face saddened a bit when his son's name escaped his mouth. "Back then, dragons were the most highly respected of the summoning creatures—but that changed when a female dragon broke one of our most sacred laws...She mated with a human."

Naruto's shock at this news quickly turned to confusion. "How is that even possible?"

"Dragons are one of only two summon species who can take human form—the other being foxes." Gamabunta saw the look on Naruto's face and held up a webbed hand to halt the oncoming question. "The fox summons have nothing to do with the Kyuubi."

Naruto seemed to accept the answer and nodded. His expression showed that he was somewhat uncomfortable with the topic of the question he was about to ask. "Why is it bad for summons to... _mate_  with humans?"

"Because any resulting children...are monsters," Gamabunta said with a foreboding tone.

Naruto suddenly became angry. "Just because the kids would be different doesn't give you the right to call them monsters!" he yelled.

Gamabunta sighed sadly. "You're not understanding me. I don't mean monsters as a derogatory term. I mean they were truly... _monsters_."

Both Naruto and Jiraiya felt a frightening chill from the tone of Gamabunta's proclamation.

"They were deformed, terrifying...and violent." Gamabunta wiped some of the water that had collected on his forehead from the misting rain which was now adding to the gloomy atmosphere. "When I was barely sixty-three years old my father told me something terrible had happened and that I was to block myself from being summoned until he said otherwise. I asked everyone I knew, but no one would tell me the details. Finally, my curiosity got the better of me and I snuck into the human world. "It didn't take me long to find the place of the disaster. There were ninjas guarding the perimeter along with authorities from several summon clans. It was difficult, but I managed to sneak past them." Gamabunta looked to the ground. "Even now...I wish I had listened to my father."

"Now, I know you think you have seen some horrible things, but the carnage I saw that day...there's just no comparison. When I walked into the village everyone had been guarding there was not an inch of the ground free of blood and bodies. You  _must_  understand when I say that these people hadn't just been  _killed_ —they had been shredded. Men…women… children—all of them barely recognizable as anything but strips of flesh. And the thing that killed them all...was the five-year-old child of a dragon and a human."

Naruto and Jiraiya were stunned into silence—their mouths and eyes wide with expressions of abject horror.

"We had no warning. The child had been hidden from us in an effort to keep the other summon clans from killing her. By the time her presence was made known, it was too late—and an entire village paid the price." Gamabunta's face hardened into anger. "It was not just the female who had committed the crime. The entire clan knew of the child and kept her secret from us. The dragons are a disgrace and should never be allowed to work with our human comrades," he said bitterly.

The rain had become a light summer shower, which would have been refreshing if the situation had been different. "The father of the child was a Namikaze." Gamabunta ignored Naruto's reaction to this revelation and continued. "The head of the clan put a blood seal on the contract. Suna had only been founded three years before but they already had some good shinobi so the contract was given to the first Kazekage for safe keeping. I still don't know why your ancestor refused to destroy the contract outright." He looked at Naruto. "So... _now_  will you burn it?"

Naruto looked to the ground as rivulets of water made their way down his face. For a long time, the only sound that that could be heard was the rain hitting the soft earth. "No," he said in a voice so quiet Gamabunta almost didn't hear him.

"Excuse me?" Gamabunta asked, incredulously.

"I can't..." Naruto looked up. "I can't condemn an entire race because of one mistake—especially one...made out of love."

Gamabunta's resolve crumbled a bit at seeing the pleading expression on Naruto's face. "Even if it was done for love, they knowingly put innocent lives in danger. It was selfish and cruel," he explained.

Naruto clenched both his jaw and his fists. "I know. I understand that, but..." Silence. "I think if I was that kid's dad...I might've done the same thing. Love makes you do things that don't make logical sense. I know you hate them for what they did, but put yourself in their place. If it was your kid...what would you've done?"

Gamabunta felt his chest tighten. Not once in all the years since the disaster had he heard anyone disagree with his opinion on the matter, but what Naruto said made sense. "I...I might have done the same," he said with shame in his voice.

"What happened to the child?" Jiraiya asked.

Gamabunta's face was filled with regret. "She was killed."

Naruto gritted his teeth and his fist clenched. He knew in his heart it was something that had to be done but the idea of killing a five-year-old child, no matter what the reason, made that same heart feel terribly heavy.

"You came here to ask me if you could break our contract...didn't you?" Gamabunta asked sadly.

Naruto looked up at the sudden question and winced. "Yeah..."

Gamabunta squeezed his eyes shut. "There's no way I can change your mind?"

"No..." Naruto answered as he looked down.

"Alright..." Gamabunta sighed. "Jiraiya, take out the frog contract please."

Jiraiya nodded. "Sure," he answered solemnly. He unrolled the contract and laid it down on the ground.

Gamabunta stabbed the tip of one of his fingers with his sword and smeared the blood over Naruto's signature and fingerprints. He felt sad. It was like he was breaking ties with one of his children and the loss of Gamakichi seven months beforehand made it even worse. Tears nearly made their way to his eyes when he spoke. "It's done. You are no longer my subordinate."

Naruto nodded. "I have something else to ask you."

"Hm?"

"Can Sasuke be your subordinate?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"What?!" Sasuke asked in surprise.

Naruto looked at him and gave him a small smile. "I thought it'd be great if we could both use summons in battle."

Sasuke smiled. "Thanks, dobe." He shrugged and looked up at Gamabunta. "How about it?"

Gamabunta cocked an eyebrow. "That would be interesting." He smiled. "Alright." The smile turned wry as he lowered his head a bit towards Sasuke. "But you have to earn it the same way your brother did."

Sasuke's body leaned back a bit of its own accord. He didn't like the look the giant frog was giving him. "What do I have to do?" he asked tentatively.

Gamabunta straightened up. "Well, first you have to sign the contract."

Sasuke looked at Naruto and his nervous expression turned into one of resolve.  _If Naruto can do his little test I sure as hell can._  He signed the contract and placed his fingerprints. "Okay. Now what?"

"Now Naruto will teach you how to summon, and when you can manage to summon  _me_  your real test begins." Gamabunta turned to Naruto. "Be careful when you try to summon the dragons. Who knows how they'll react after not having been summoned for nearly one hundred and fifty years."

Naruto nodded. "Hai."

"Ja!" Gamabunta said right before he disappeared.

Sasuke turned to Jiraiya. "When can we start training?"

Jiraiya cocked an eyebrow. " _We_?"

"Hey! Gamabunta said I'm supposed to train you!" Naruto said indignantly.

Jiraiya smiled evilly and nodded. "He  _did_  say that."

Sasuke suddenly looked like a rabbit caught in a bear trap. "But...but he..." he sputtered as he pointed at Naruto.

"...knows more than you do and I don't have the time," Jiraiya finished for him. "Ja." And he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Sasuke looked at his brother with extreme apprehension.

Naruto folded his arms. "You don't gotta look like that. I know what I'm doing," he said with an insulted frown. "Oh crap! What time is it?!"

Sasuke blinked at the sudden change in topic and reached inside his equipment pouch. After a second or two of rummaging around the bottom, he produced a small pocket watch. "It's three thirty."

"Crap! I gotta go get changed!" Naruto proclaimed. "I'll see you later!" he said as he began to run.

"But..." Sasuke began.

Naruto jogged backward for a moment to answer. "Sorry, Nii-san! We'll hafta train tomorrow!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, sighed and left the field.

 

* * *

You better hurry, Naruto-kun or you're going to be late!" Nabiki warned as Naruto ran by her.

 

"I know, I know!" Naruto replied as he bolted up the stairs to his room. He opened his closet and looked at the formal kimono in front of him. He had no idea how to put it on and the idea of asking his mother made him cringe.  _I'll just hafta figure it out for myself._  He took the kimono off the hanger and took off his shirt.

 

* * *

Nabiki stared at Naruto as he came down the stairs and then giggled. "Ano, Naruto-kun?" 

Naruto looked at her quizzically. "What?"

"You're dead," Nabiki laughed.

"Huh?"

"The way you have your kimono wrapped—it's only done that way on dead people for funerals."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Aw crud," he said as he began to fiddle with the obi.

Nabiki giggled again. "Here. Let me." She rewrapped the kimono for him and stood back to admire her work. "Much better," she said with a grin.

"Thanks." Naruto looked down. "Do I look dorky in this?"

"Nope. In fact, if you were a few years older Hinata would have some competition," Nabiki said with a slightly feral grin and a wink.

Naruto blushed. "Thanks. I'll see you later," he said as he began to walk away.

"Ja na," Nabiki called after him.

 

* * *

The room was fairly simple, yet elegant. There were lotus blossoms in vases next to each side of a traditional Japanese wedding alter along with a set of incense burners in the middle of the kneeling height table. Tomoyo, Kakashi, Anko, and Tsunade waited for Naruto to appear. Tomoyo tapped her fingers on the doorframe that lead to the outside. "Where the heck  _is_  he?"

Kakashi smiled in amusement at his soon-to-be wife's impatience. "Don't worry. He wouldn't miss this."

Tomoyo suddenly noticed a speck on the horizon which was slowly increasing in size. Soon, Naruto was jogging up to the temple entrance. "Gomen. I had trouble getting this thing on," he said, pointing to his outfit.

Tomoyo smiled. "That's okay—but this is only a rehearsal. You didn't need to wear that."

Naruto's arms dropped slack to his sides and he bent over a bit. "Gah! You coulda told me that."

"I'm sorry, kiddo. I thought you knew." Tomoyo led him to his starting point. "Alright. Let's get this started."

 

* * *

Sasuke's heart felt like a lead weight in his chest as he walked through the gates of the Uchiha compound. It was on that day, so many years ago, that his family was slaughtered. It was also the only day of the year he came anywhere near his old home. Every grain of dirt on the road, every shingle on the houses, every whisper of the wind carried him back to the days when everyone was alive—when he was happy.

 He walked into his house and headed for the kitchen. As he looked to the stove he could almost see his mother standing there—making dinner for everyone. His own childhood laughter floated to his ears through the mists of time as Itachi's best friend, Shisui, tickled him. Itachi only smirked as he watched them from his place at the table.

Sasuke sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again the memory was gone and the cold cruelty of the empty house came rushing back to him. He gritted his teeth and headed back outside, pausing in his step when he saw the spot where Itachi had damaged the wall. He felt the dam inside of him burst and ran to the spot. "DAMN YOU!" he yelled as he punched clear through the wall.

As soon as the hole was made, Sasuke felt his blood run cold. Something was very  _very_  wrong. He swallowed, turned around...and screamed...

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ((Hires a bodyguard with slender clawed gauntlets as weapons and slams the door to the RPR)) Ummmm. ((cough)) I will repeat what I said last time, you kill, you no get shiny continuation.
> 
> I will warn you though; the next chapter is mainly an excuse to get some horror in there. I haven't done much horror/gore wise for a long time. It also gives me time to work out some plot points of the main storyline that are giving me a headache.


	21. Echoes

Sasuke stood with his mouth agape at the vision of horror that stood before him. There was a dark hollow where her right eye had been and a slash on the front of her kimono where a sword had obviously sliced through. "K-K-Kaa-san?!" he whispered sharply.

 Sasuke's mother, despite the condition she was in, simply smiled and held out the carefully wrapped box in her hand. "Sasuke-chan, you forgot your obento," she said sweetly.

Sasuke didn't move. He could barely think in his current situation, never mind give any kind of a response.

"Nii-san!"

"Sasuke!"

Sasuke looked in the direction of the voices and saw Naruto and Hinata running toward him.

"You okay?" Naruto asked as he skidded to a halt just in front of his brother.

"Where'd you come from?" Sasuke asked in a slight daze.

"We heard you scream," Hinata explained, concern evident in her features.

Sasuke frowned and looked back at where his mother was. "It's..." his words escaped him when he saw there was nothing to greet him but the emptiness of the compound, "nothing..." he was extremely glad she was gone. The idea that he could see ghosts was not something he wanted to add to his psychiatric resume.

Naruto looked extremely skeptical, but he knew that pushing him for an answer would gain nothing but arguments. "Whatever you say. C'mon—I'm done with the wedding rehearsal. We can train."

Sasuke stared at the spot where his mother had been. "Yeah...let's get out of here."

The three teens turned to leave but as they neared the gate it slammed shut of its own accord. "What the hell?!" Naruto exclaimed.

Hinata frowned. "Byakugan!" She glanced all around them but there was nothing. "I don't see any enemies," she said with confusion.

Sasuke tried to pull the gate open but it was no use. "It won't budge."

Naruto looked determined. "So what? Let's just jump over it."

Sasuke shrugged and as the light of the setting sun began to fade he and Naruto attempted to leap out of the compound only to hit some kind of invisible barrier. They flew back and hit the ground hard.

Sasuke glared at the sky.  _What's going on here? Is it some kind of genjutsu?_

Naruto saw the shadow of someone walking by the gates and stood up. "Hey—Can you get the Hokage?" There was no response and the sound of the person's footsteps began receding. "Are you listening to me? We're trapped in here!" The footsteps were nearly gone. "OI!"

"I don't think they can hear us." Sasuke swallowed as his eyes scanned the area.

"C...Could it be...g-ghosts?" Hinata asked in a very small voice.

As darkness settled in around them Sasuke stiffened and Naruto's eyes widened. "D-D-Don't even say things like that!" he hissed nervously.

Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at his brother and smirked. "Scared of ghosts?"

Naruto looked incredulous. "No way! I just don't want Hinata to be scared!"

Sasuke was completely unconvinced. "Right." He looked around. "It's probably a genjutsu trap—and if it is then there should be a marker somewhere. I say we start looking for it."

Hinata gulped. "Sasuke, I...don't see any markers," she said as she took another look around with her byakugan.

Sasuke frowned. "I refuse to believe in something so ridiculous as ghosts!" he snapped. "Now come on—let's start looking."

As Sasuke stalked off, Hinata looked at Naruto. She was hoping he'd give her some answer that made better sense than genjutsu  _or_  ghosts but he merely shrugged.

"Look, we both know he's wrong but it'll keep him happy and it'll give us something to do while we think," Naruto said with a warm smile.

Hinata smiled in appreciation, nodded and took Naruto's outstretched hand.

 

* * *

The knot in Naruto's stomach tightened its grip the longer they walked. Suddenly he realized something and stopped. "Guys...there's no crickets..."

 Sasuke stopped. "What?"

"There aren't any crickets chirping. Listen..." Naruto explained further.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and stood quietly. After a moment his eyes flattened into a glare.  _He's right...there's nothing,_  he thought as he tried to quell the panic rising in his chest. He noticed something else wrong and the feeling increased. "There's no fireflies either."

Naruto and Hinata looked around, fear growing on their faces.

"What the hell IS THIS?!" Naruto yelled. He was suddenly silent, however, when he noticed Sasuke and Hinata staring over his shoulders with wide, fearful eyes. "Hey...what's the matter with you guys?" He looked behind him to see what they were looking at and his expression quickly mirrored theirs.

Uchiha walked the streets like they would have on any normal day—except that every single one of them sported some kind of fatal wound. Some of them had slashes or holes where they had been run through with a sword, others were missing limbs, and one was even lacking his head.

A little girl Sasuke recognized as one of his younger cousins skipped up to him. "Sasuke, why do you look bigger?" she asked innocently.

Sasuke tried not to stare at the child's missing ear and the gash across her jugular vein, but he just couldn't look away. "V...Vitamins," he answered in a daze.

The girl frowned. "You're trying to trick me," she said with a pout.

Hinata swallowed and walked over to the little girl, who couldn't have been more than five. "N-No. He's right. Vitamins make you grow big and strong," she said with a kind smile. Underneath her smile, however, she was fighting the urge to do a face plant in the dirt.

The little girl broke out into an adorable smile. "Okay! I'm gonna take all my vitamins from now on!" she proudly proclaimed.

Hinata bravely patted the child on the head. "Good girl. Now run along. I'm sure your mommy is wondering where you are."

"Hai!" the child said before running off.

Suddenly all the people vanished and Naruto, Hinata, and Sasuke were all alone once again. Without missing a beat, and without looking away from where the child had been, Naruto said, "So, Sasuke...still gonna deny we're dealin' with ghosts here?"

Sasuke slowly turned his head to give his brother a death glare. The glare vanished when he noticed the dragon scroll strapped to Naruto's back. "Why do you have that with you?"

Naruto blinked at the sudden change in mood and looked over his shoulder. "I wanted to train—remember?"

"Oh right." Sasuke sighed. "Let's go to my house. We can stay there while we figure out a way to escape."

The other two nodded and they began to walk. Hinata suddenly screamed as she was yanked to the ground by an unseen force and dragged along the ground by her ankles until she hit the outer wall of one of the houses.

"HINA-CHAN!"

"Hinata!"

Both boys ran as fast as their legs would carry them to their friend. Hinata was holding her head and squinting her eyes from the pain.

"Hina-chan! Are you okay?" Naruto asked as he gently lifted her to a sitting position.

Hinata opened her eyes a little. "H-Hai."

Naruto frowned skeptically.

"Really," Hinata urged. "I bumped my head and my back stings, but I'm okay."

"I'm gonna check your back," Naruto said with a slight blush.

"O...Okay," Hinata replied as she also turned a bit pink.

Naruto moved behind her and carefully lifted the back of her shirt while Hinata held onto the front to make sure that wasn't raised as well.

Naruto winced a little at the scratches and scrapes that dotted her back. "You'll be okay. I just wish I knew how to use my healing powers on you."

"It's okay," Hinata said with a smile.

"This is getting dangerous. We need a way out of here," Sasuke said.

"Why would anyone in your family want to hurt Hina-chan?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know. Maybe we're not just dealing with my family."

Naruto helped Hinata to her feet and the three made it to Sasuke's house without further incident.

 

* * *

Naruto sighed as the three sat near the fireplace in Sasuke's living room trying to come up with ideas. His arm began to itch and he scratched at it subconsciously. After a few minutes, he felt an odd sensation where he'd been scratching and looked at his arm. A small red bump the size of a dime had begun to swell on the spot.  _What the hell?_  The bump continued to grow until it was the size of a quarter...and began moving...

 Hinata had taken a package of crackers out of her equipment pouch and handed two to Sasuke. "Naruto-kun—would you like some crackers?" She stopped when she saw him staring at his arm. "Naruto-kun?"

Naruto watched the bump with growing trepidation when suddenly the skin split open and out crawled hundreds of baby spiders. He instantly began screaming.

Hinata jumped when Naruto screamed and started sweeping at his arm with his hands. "Naruto-kun! What's wrong?"

"Get them off of me! Get them off! GET 'EM OFF!"

Hinata and Sasuke were desperately trying to see what Naruto was talking about. "Get what off of you?!" Sasuke asked.

"THE SPIDERS! WHAT ELSE WOULD I BE TALKING ABOUT?!"

There was still nothing as far as Sasuke could see so he did the only thing he could think of—he punched the top of Naruto's head.

Naruto grabbed the top of his head. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!"

"You're hallucinating, dobe!"

"What?!" Naruto looked back at his arm. There were no spiders, no bump, not even the itching sensation. "It...it wasn't...real?" he said in between gasps.

Hinata shook her head. "I don't think we can take anything for granted anymore."

"I'm home!"

Wide-eyed, Sasuke turned to stare at his mother as she came through the doorway to the living room.

Uchiha Mikoto's smile widened when she noticed Naruto and Hinata. "You have friends over! Oh, sweetie, this is wonderful!" She turned to Naruto. "I was starting to think he'd be a loner forever," she said with a light chuckle.

Naruto managed a twitchy smile. "Yeah. He's kind of a stick in the—OW!" In irritation, he rubbed the spot when Sasuke had just kicked him.

Sasuke glared at Naruto for a moment then turned back to his mother, who was giggling at their antics. He was torn between wanting to hug her, wanting to run away, and the need to find out about their current situation. The third option won. "K...Kaa-san, can I ask you a question."

Mikoto looked at her son and frowned a little at the expression on his face. "Of course, sweetheart. What's wrong?"

Sasuke took in a shaky breath. "H...Have you noticed anything out of the ordinary lately?"

Mikoto thought for a moment. "Not really. Although you look a little taller," she said, her smile returning.

"Have you seen anyone that isn't supposed to be here?"

Trepidation flickered across Mikoto's face before she blinked it away. "I...I could've sworn I saw Shisui today." She shook her head. "I think I'm just tired. My mind is playing tricks on me. I wouldn't worry about it." She placed a comforting hand on her son's shoulder. She suddenly froze as her eyes flashed wide and she sucked in a deep breath. The instant she had touched Sasuke her memories of the massacre came flooding back to her. She stepped backward, looking confused.

Sasuke scanned his mother's face. She seemed different somehow—more...awake. "Kaa-san?"

Mikoto looked at her surroundings as if seeing them for the first time. "S..Sasuke-chan? Wh...What's going on? Why is our house so empty? Why..." She swallowed as she stared at her son. "Why do you look so much older?"

Sasuke stood there with his mouth agape. Things were different when she was just a ghost who didn't know what was going on—but now that she did and was really, truly responding to him, she seemed more real.

Mikoto's eyes widened again as though she'd remembered something else and she looked down. Her eyes filled with intangible tears as she placed her hand over the wound in her stomach. She slowly looked back up at Sasuke. "I'm dead...aren't I?"

Sasuke managed to nod his answer.

Mikoto's lips pressed together in sadness. The feeling was nearly overwhelming. "How long?"

Hinata decided to make things a little easier on Sasuke. "Almost seven years, Uchiha-san."

"Oh, Sasuke-chan...I'm so sorry," Mikoto cried out as she pulled her son into a hug. "I didn't want to leave you."

Sasuke shivered at the cold arms that surrounded him. He felt panic rising in his chest and pushed her away.

Mikoto was confused. "Sasuke-chan?"

"No! I-I-I can't! I can't do this!" Sasuke yelled.

"I don't understand," Mikoto said softly as tears made their way down her face.

"I can't pretend like you're alive! When whatever's going on is all over, you'll be gone again!" Soft plops sounded on the tatami mat floor as Sasuke's tears fell free.

"Sasuke-chan..." Mikoto said as she stretched out a hand toward him.

"NO!" Sasuke shouted. He bolted out of the room and out of the house.

"Sasuke-chan." Mikoto looked down and let the tears fall.

 

* * *

Sasuke sat against the outer wall of his house with his knees up to his chest and his face in his hands. He wanted so very much to go back in the house with his mother. He wanted to talk to her, tell her all that had happened to him, let himself feel safe in her comforting arms—but he just couldn't. To have her ripped away from him again after seeing her for only such a short time would turn him into an emotional wreck and he knew it.

 

* * *

"Do you wanna sit down?" Naruto offered to Mikoto. 

Mikoto shook her head then got a curious look on her face as she closer look at Naruto. "You're..." she began, but remembering that his friend might not know of Naruto's 'condition' she cut herself off.

Somehow Naruto knew what she was going to say and he nodded toward Hinata. "It's okay. She knows."

Mikoto looked relieved. "You're still alive..." She smiled. "I'm glad. There were days I'd heard rumors that made me think you wouldn't even live to graduate the academy."

Naruto smiled. "Thank you. That means a lot to me." He looked to the door. "I gotta go see how he's doing."

Mikoto nodded in understanding. "Go ahead. It's comforting to know he has such caring friends."

Naruto smiled, took Hinata's hand and walked out of the building.

 

* * *

Sasuke rolled his eyes when Naruto sat down next to him. He wished that just once, Naruto would see fit to let him be alone. "Go away, please."

 Naruto frowned and shook his head. "Can't do it. We gotta get out of here and that means we don't have time for this."

Sasuke hated it when Naruto made more sense than he did. It was just...odd. "Alright. But I'm not going back in there," he said as he got to his feet.

"But maybe your mom knows who's keeping us here," Naruto offered.

"She doesn't...but I do."

They turned around to see a young Uchiha boy who seemed to be in his early teens. Hinata and Naruto had no particular reaction other than confusion, but Sasuke's face screamed recognition. "Shisui."

"That's right Sasuke-chan," Shisui said with a superior smile.

Sasuke took a step back. Something was not right. "What do you know about this?"

Shisui chuckled. It was not a pleasant sound. "I'm the one keeping you here."

Naruto's eyes flattened into a glare as he remembered Hinata getting hurt. "You son of a bitch!" He charged Shisui but it was to no avail as he went right through him.

Shisui laughed again. "You can't hit someone who's dead—baaaka," he said with a condescending tone.

Naruto swallowed. "You're a ghost too?"

"Sasuke-chan knew immediately. Didn't you, Sasuke-chan?"

"Stop using 'chan' with my name!" Sasuke retorted. "And why would you do this?! Itachi was the traitor, not you."

"Itachi and I planned the clan's destruction...together," Shisui said with a cold smile.

"What?!" Sasuke hissed.

"Itachi and I knew the only way to be accepted into Akatsuki and destroy the clan was if one of us had the mangekyou sharingan. And I would guess you know by now how that is achieved?"

Sasuke swallowed, remembering his attempt to kill Naruto. "Ahn."

"Neither of us was in a hurry to die but the clan was so full of  _scum_  by that point that there was no choice. We simply flipped a coin. I won. As I was preparing to kill the only friend I'd ever had he betrayed me...and I was killed instead." Shisui's face became angry. "As I lay dying he told me he believed it was better if he was the one who survived because he thought he was stronger and had a better chance than I did."

"I've walked these streets for seven years with no purpose-until you punched that wall today," he said, pointing at the aforementioned wall. "I don't know why, but that act woke me from the dream world of the past I'd been living in. And now I have a purpose." His anger turned to a feeling of satisfaction. "I will take my revenge...on you."

 

 


	22. The Guardian

Several emotions flooded through Sasuke's body at the words Shisui had spoken. Anger and sadness that yet another one of the people he'd trusted most when he was younger had betrayed him. And his hatred of Itachi...was now doubled. His elder brother had put people he cared about in extreme danger...again—and it tore at his insides that he had no idea of how to change the current situation.

Hinata suddenly perked up and looked at Naruto. "Naruto-kun—the dragons!"

Naruto and Sasuke looked at her with blank stares of confusion. "Huh?" was Naruto's answer.

"I read something once that said dragons are a bridge between our world and the spirit world. If you summon one, it might know how to stop this!" Hinata answered urgently.

Shisui laughed at what he believed to be their complete lunacy. "Dragons don't exist, you idiots."

Naruto ignored him and pulled the contract scroll off his back. He stared at it for a moment in uncertainty before unrolling it and using his summoning ring to draw blood from his thumb.

Shisui's smirk began to fade. Although he still believed there was no way dragons existed he also didn't feel it was wise to let them continue with whatever they were doing. "Don't ignore me!"

In a flash, Shisui had a hold of Hinata's throat.

Naruto looked up from having  _just_  placed his fingerprints under his signature. "Hina-chan!" He rushed forward to help her but Sasuke held him back.

"You finish that! I'll help her!" he said as he began trying to remove the hands that were cutting off Hinata's breathing. It wasn't doing much good though, seeing as how the hands he was trying to grab were non-corporeal.

Naruto flashed through the summoning seals faster than he ever had in his life. "KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!"

The cloud of smoke that had emitted from Naruto's jutsu distracted Shisui enough that his grip on Hinata loosened. Sasuke took the opportunity and pulled her to safety. He placed the coughing girl on the ground and watched the clearing smoke.

It was roughly fifteen feet long and ten feet tall. Its long, sleek, black body shimmered in the moonlight. Its horns, claws, the row of ridges on its back and the fan on the end of its tail were a golden yellow. Blue eyes looked out from its face and a blue, teardrop-shaped jewel rested in the center of its forehead. The dragon blinked and looked around for a moment before settling its gaze on Naruto. "What just happened?" it asked in a distinctly female voice.

Naruto quickly got over the amazement he felt at seeing a real live dragon. "I summoned you to help us!"

"Summoned? How did you?" the dragon asked.

"I'll explain later. Right now we need your help!" Naruto pointed at Shisui. "He's trying to kill us!"

The dragon blinked in confusion. "Kill you?" She blinked again, this time in realization. "Wait...you're alive?"

"Of course we're alive!" Naruto retorted.

"Then what are you doing in the spirit realm?"

"We're in the spirit realm?!" Hinata squeaked.

"Well, yes. It's an easy fix though. Hold on a moment." She held up her three-clawed hands and the jewel in her forehead began glowing. She took in a deep breath and exhaled a shimmering cloud of mist, which she spread wide with her hands. As the mist circulated the air around them wavered like the ripples that radiated off the roads on a hot afternoon.

As the world around them began to phase back to normal Sasuke noticed his mother standing in the doorway to his house. The look of sadness on her face was almost more than he could stand. "Wait!"

This brought Shisui out of the trance he'd been in and eyes widened when his mind registered that he might be about to lose his captives. "I won't let you!" He lunged forward but his outstretched hands grasped nothing but air as Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, and the dragon faded out of existence. He screamed at nothing. "NOOO!"

Sasuke turned to the dragon. "We have to go back! My mother's still trapped with him!" he said desperately.

The dragon smiled serenely at Sasuke. "She's fine. When I brought you home I also repaired the barrier between heaven and hell. That boy is back where he belongs and so is your family."

Sasuke sighed in relief, but he still couldn't help but turn a longing stare toward the spot his mother had been standing.

The dragon looked around for a moment. "I wonder how the barrier was cracked in the first place."

"Shisui said he felt a change of some kind when I punched that wall over there," Sasuke explained, gesturing toward the wall.

The dragon looked thoughtful for a moment. "I assume this compound used to be your home, correct?"

Sasuke nodded.

"And what happened here?"

"My older brother murdered my clan," Sasuke said with practiced emptiness.

The dragon frowned. "I see." There was silence as she thought for a moment. "I think you managed to hit the heart of the spiritual energy of this place. And because you're related to people who died so tragically your blood acted as a catalyst," she said, indicating the small cuts on Sasuke's knuckles.

Sasuke nodded and then grudgingly said, "Thank you...for fixing this."

"Not a problem. We dragons are the guardians of the barrier. It's kind of my job," she said with a bemused smile.

"Are you okay, Hina-chan?" Naruto asked as he helped her to her feet.

"H-hai. My throat is a little sore though." Hinata put her hand to her neck and activated her healing chakra. The bruising slowly began to fade.

Naruto turned to the dragon. "Thank you so much. If you hadn't helped us..." He didn't even want to finish the sentence as he looked down at the girl he loved.

The dragon smiled. "Now that you're all safe, could you tell me how I was pulled out of my realm?"

 

* * *

The dragon shook her head in disbelief. "I read about summoning in school, but I was always told our contract was gone."

Naruto blinked rapidly. "You have school?"

"Well, I'm certain it's vastly different than what you're thinking of, but yes, we have school," the dragon said with a light chuckle.

"What's your name?" Hinata asked with a polite smile.

"I am called Kazehana. And your name is?" she asked as she turned to Naruto.

Naruto smiled. "Uzumaki Naruto. Will you accept me as your subordinate?" he asked eagerly.

Kazehana raised her eyebrows. "I...I don't even know if I can. The contract has been out of use for so long." At Naruto's dejected expression she frowned. For some reason, she couldn't put her finger on she felt an immense need to not disappoint him. "Well...lemme talk to my father. I'll see what I can do," she said with a reassuring smile.

"Okay. How long do you think it'll take?"

Kazehana scratched the back of her scaly neck in thought. "Ummm. I'm not really sure. Summon me again in a half hour I guess." She held up her hand. "Ja." And with that, she vanished in a puff of smoke.

Naruto turned to his brother. "You okay?"

Sasuke set his jaw. He hated being pitied or comforted. "I'll be fine," he grumbled. "How about you?" he asked Hinata.

Hinata nodded fervently. "I'm fine. Domo arigato," she said with a low bow.

Sasuke nodded in satisfaction. "I'm gonna go train." He began to walk off. "See you guys later."

Naruto shook his head at Sasuke's issue avoiding no jutsu and turned to Hinata. "C'mon, Hina-chan. Let's get you home."

Hinata nodded and leaned on Naruto's shoulder as they headed for her house, feeling immensely relieved to be in the living world again. "Naruto-kun?"

"Hm?"

"You l-look handsome in your kimono," Hinata said with a blush.

Considering what they'd just been through, some corner of Naruto's brain found the comment so out of place that it was amusing. He chuckled lightly. "Thanks."

 

* * *

Sasuke had no idea how he'd wound up at TenTen's door, but even as he stood on the front stoop of her house he was angry that it had happened. In fact, his thoughts had been turning to her a lot of late and it bothered him. He barely heard her as she walked up behind him.

"Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke shook his head to clear away his reverie. "Yo, Tenten. I was just...ah..." he tried to think of what to tell her but words failed him.  _Come up with an excuse dammit!_  he inwardly berated himself.

Tenten cocked her head to one side in curiosity. "Did you wanna train?"

"Hai!" Sasuke answered with relief at having been spared from trying to get his treacherous brain to do what he wanted.

Tenten smiled. "Great! Just let me put this inside," she said, indicating the bag of groceries in her arms. She ran in the house and reappeared a moment later with a few kunai. "Night training will be good for your aim," she said enthusiastically before running off towards her backyard.

Sasuke frowned. "What do you mean by that?" He ran after her. "Oi!"

 

* * *

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!" The smoke cleared and Kazehana once again stood before Naruto.

"Hey, Naruto. He said everything should be fine" she said with a wide smile. "I think it's going to take me a while to get used to it though." She laughed. "Oh, dad said to ask you—Are you related to the Namikaze clan?"

Naruto grinned. "Yup! That's my dad's side of the family."

"He'll be happy to hear that." Kazehana noticed a woman with long, blonde pigtails standing next to her newly appointed subordinate.

Naruto noticed where the dragon was looking. "Oh yeah! This is my mom," he explained.

Tsunade gave a short bow. "It is a great honor to meet you. I must admit—when my son first told me he had a dragon contract I thought it was a fake."

"A fake?" Kazehana repeated with some disbelief.

"This may be odd for you to hear, but not many people believe dragons exist anymore," Tsunade said with a bit of embarrassment.

Kazehana's eyelids fluttered in shock. "But...we're the guardians of the spirit world barrier! How can they not believe in us?"

Tsunade frowned. "I think the truth was distorted to keep people from looking for the contract."

Kazehana hung her head. "Of course. I should've suspected something like that—after what happened."

"So you know about the village?" Naruto asked gently.

Kazehana snorted. "How could I not know? The other summon clans never let us forget it," she said with some bitterness.

Naruto frowned.

"Anyway. Um...what's the name of your village?"

"Konohagakure. My mom is the Hokage," Naruto said proudly.

Kazehana's eyes widened. "Oh! Please forgive my rudeness, Hokage-sama. You've had to crane your neck to talk to me."

Tsunade let out a short laugh. "No no. It's fine. You're tall—it's kind of unavoidable."

"I don't have to be tall. That's the point."

"Huh?" Naruto said.

Without another word a white glow surrounded Kazehana and she slowly began to shrink and change shape. When the glow faded a human woman stood before them. Her skin was a medium tan and her hair was black with a few golden yellow streaks and reached her shoulder blades. Her eyes were the same blue they had been in her dragon form. The only clue that something was 'off' about her was that her forehead gem was still in place. Well, that, and the fact that she was stark naked.

Naruto's hands flew to his face as he attempted to cover up the blood coming out of his nose but the red liquid just oozed its way between his fingers. He turned around hurriedly.

Tsunade couldn't hold back her laughter as poor Kazehana stood there in utter bewilderment. Naruto, meanwhile, was waving his right arm out behind him practically chanting, "Clothes clothes  _clothes_!"

Kazehana looked down at herself. "Oh! I forgot about that!" She looked at Tsunade. "I am so sorry!"

Tsunade took pity on the humanoid dragon and handed her, her jacket. "It's alright. We'll just make sure we have something for you to wear from now on," she giggled. "I forgot dragons have a human form."

"I thought you didn't believe in us before now?"

"That hardly stops dragons from being in storybooks," Tsunade answered plainly.

"Good point." Kazehana looked at Naruto. "You can turn around now."

Cautiously, Naruto looked at Kazehana, who was wearing his mother's jacket like a makeshift dress.

Kazehana shifted her weight nervously and coughed to clear her throat. "Sorry I embarrassed you."

"It's okay," Naruto replied.

"There's something you have a right to know before you take my son as your subordinate," Tsunade said seriously.

"Huh?"

Naruto looked at Tsunade with wide eyes as he realized what she was about to say. "Kaa-san, no!"

Tsunade's expression became stern. "Wouldn't you want to know in her place?"

Naruto sighed in defeat and looked down. "Yeah..."

Tsunade sighed. "Almost a year ago, Naruto was kidnapped by a traitor from our village. They performed experiments on him—trying to give him the niji chakra." Silence. "They succeeded."

Kazehana was shocked and angry. The very thought of what she knew had been done in order to create niji chakra sickened her. "They...they killed members of the summon clans...for power?!" she growled.

Naruto squeezed his eyes shut. "Yeah."

Kazehana swallowed as her eyes filled with tears. "Do...do you know the names of the summons they killed?"

"Only one," Naruto replied sadly. "And he was my friend. Gamakichi...from the frog clan."

Kazehana gasped as her hand flew to her mouth. "I knew Gamakichi had died, but...but they never said how."

"I understand if you don't want me as your subordinate now," Naruto said softly.

Kazehana wiped her eyes. "You didn't kill them." She sniffed and smiled reassuringly. "Of course I still want you as my subordinate."

Naruto smiled gratefully. "Thank you," he said with a respectful bow.

Tsunade smiled at her son's response.  _He's grown so much._

"Anything else I should know?" Kazehana asked with a slight wince.

Tsunade smiled. "Nothing that he can't tell you himself if he wants to."

Kazehana smiled. "I should be on my way. It's getting close to dinner time."

Tsunade pulled a pocket watch from her waistband. "So it is. It was a pleasure to meet you, Kazehana. I trust you'll take good care of my son when he calls you."

Kazehana nodded. "Of course." She turned to Naruto. "Ja na, Naruto-kun."

"Ja!"

Kazehana left and Naruto and Tsunade began heading to their home. As Naruto's foot crunched a stick on the ground he looked up at his mother. "Neh, Kaa-san? How'd you know she'd know what the niji chakra was?"

"Gama Bunta told me about it when Orochimaru was still a part of our team," Tsunade replied. "In fact, I'm sure it's what gave that bastard the idea to try it in the first place."

Naruto frowned, wondering if Gamabunta had also made that connection.

 

* * *

As Sasuke looked at the target in front of him his eyelids began to fall of their own accord. He looked at his pocket watch and frowned. It was nearly midnight. "Tenten."

Tenten tilted her head to one side. "Hm?"

"I think I'm going to go to bed. I'm going to Kakashi's wedding tomorrow," Sasuke said with a yawn.

Tenten stood, yawned and stretched. "Mm. Yeah. It is kinda late isn't it?" She reached up and pulled the pins from her hair buns, letting her hair fall in soft brown ripples to her mid-back.

Sasuke's mouth dropped a little. He'd never seen Tenten look so...so...grown up. The buns she always wore made her look childish.

Tenten put her hands up to the places the buns had been and began scratching madly. "Ugh! Itchy itchy itchy!" she complained.

Tenten's mini-rant brought Sasuke out of his trance. He suddenly became aware that he had been staring and a light blush crept its way up to his cheeks.

Tenten stared back, but her stare was one of confusion.  _Why is his face all red? Does he have a fever?_  she wondered. "Sasuke-kun? Are you okay?"

Sasuke made an odd choking sound. "I...I've gotta go!" He bolted out of the yard and down the street.

Tenten watched him go. "What the hell was that about?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear oh dear. Tormenting Sasuke is just too much fun. I know it's an odd place to cut it off but next is the wedding so I had to. Lol.


End file.
